Fire in a Storm
by Of Crimson Moonlight
Summary: It's not the fear of having joy that tears Severus apart. It's the fear of losing it. A dying friend's wish is granted and a transformation spell takes place. Exchanging feathers for freedom, she is the last thing anyone expected to help him.Sev/Hed
1. Sacrifice

Author: Of Crimson Moonlight

Author's Note: After this chapter, Severus won't appear again until the third chapter so please be patient and give this new idea a try. It's nice to try something new every once in a while.

Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns all characters from Harry Potter.

Sacrifice

_What did he say? Don't come back?_ A snowy owl struggled in a cage trying to find a comfortable position that could not exist in the small space. The bars were already weighing its wings down but the pain of those words that had been said weighed down its heart. _Why did he say that? _

The great white bird looked around the small attic room where all the other owls had been stored. If owls could cry….With determination, the owl started to swing its hanging prison hoping to crash it soon. Perhaps the gate would break? Another shifting of the body and the cage began to rise higher. Just as the bird's mission was about to be accomplished, a hand steadied the steel wires.

"None of that, if you please." The pale hand's owner stopped the needed result to be freed. No one could mistake the dark raven hair. That and the proud Roman nose that protruded so much from his face belonged to the man who hated the owl's master. He seemed to be looking at a horned owl, but the snowy white was determined to cause a commotion in the once quiet chamber by ruffling its feathers continuously until the man was forced to once again draw its attention to the bird as he put down a quill and parchment. With a more irritated than concerned tone, he asked, "What is the problem? Oh? You're _Potter's_ bird."

The way this man spoke her owner's name was with such hatred! As the man leaned forward to scrutinize the bird of prey, the fowl bit a part of the man's nose giving him a sharp pain. At moment of contact the human pulled back and started to curse loudly as he put a hand over his injured sense.

Seeing the new spectacle, every bird in the room started to screech and cry as if they were laughing at the foolish being that stuck his nose where it didn't belong.

"You-"

"Professor Snape."

_Hermione!_ Hedwig became exited once more and started to bounce up and down hoping to gain the attention of the young witch. _Letter! I need a letter! Then I can go see master! _

If she could sing, Hedwig would have let out a song so joyous that the merfolk would be put to shame. Her only excuse was that she was mute, causing her to become an outcast. Sensing her difference, the other owls shied away from her.

Justifying her distinction, the snow bird thought it only natural that she was what they called, 'different'. Of course she was. Hedwig would remind herself that only a different sort of bird could be the type worthy of serving the Boy Who Lived. She had no idea there were uglier meanings to the word 'different'. But of course, what did she care? For all Hedwig was concerned, she only wanted Harry to be happy. And if only Hermione or Ron gave her a letter to deliver, he _would_ be happy. If Harry was happy, Hedwig was happy.

_Hermione! __Oh, Hermione! Letter please? Please?_ The owl couldn't contain herself anymore and began to swing the cage.

"Hedwig!" The girl kept the cage motionless with two hands as she looked towards the man she had addressed as Professor Snape. "Sir, it seems she has a dislike for you. Perhaps you should leave before she bites you again."

Snape turned away from the girl and started to rub the sore spot on his face until the color evened out and no trace of red could be seen from the bite mark. "I do not need to be told by you or anyone else in this cursed house, Granger. I was already leaving. If it is not an _inconvenience_, Miss Granger, I was saying 'farewell' to a friend. Leave." He looked at the brown horned owl and stroked the feathers almost gently but his actions stopped when a throaty voice whispered.

"Since when did _he_ have friends?"

"Weasley!"

"He heard?" The red head, in his haste to get away, hit his head against the doorpost causing his cap with its green 'W' stitched on the front to fall off as he disappeared from the doorway with Hermione following close behind.

Hedwig looked at the exit the two had taken and her heart sunk. She still hadn't received any letters which meant she _still_ could not see Harry!

Her thoughts in her mind were interrupted when she heard a sigh come from the dark man. He had a look of weariness from whatever mission he had just accomplished. Humans were funny. If they didn't like doing something why didn't they stop?

"Farewell." He said quietly. "Farewell, old friend."

Hedwig looked to the friend Professor Snape had talked to. Without a doubt, it was the dark brown owl. Now that she actually took the time to observe the other owl, she noticed the antiquity of the bird. It was an obvious fact that the chestnut-colored owl would die very soon.

Not noticing the man in black's departure, Hedwig continued to watch the old thing perched on his own branch of dead twigs. Just as she was about to turn away the old bird locked its eyes to Hedwig's.

**I'm awfully old, aren't I?** The owl asked slowly, taking a pause to breath.

Having nothing to say, Hedwig just watched in silence. Instead of moving away, she respectfully listened to the older owls words.

**Ah, that's right. You're the Chosen One's bird, correct?**

Taking pride at the elder's words, Hedwig ruffled her feathers making her seem a taller and more puffed up than usual. She was proud that her master was none other than the _only_ person who had survived the killing curse, and Hedwig wanted everyone to know it.

**Good, good.** The senior owl turned his head. **Not many proud ones these days. My poor master. He'll be alone when I die. My master hasn't even received another animal yet. Ah, poor master.**

Sympathizing with the owl, Hedwig scooted closer to him.

**It seems you agree with me. That your master should never be alone, but…that raises the question, why are you here? Your master, I'm sure, is back at his own home. Shouldn't you be with him?**

Shame struck her now. Not pride, but shame. Unconsciously, the snowy white tucked her head under her wing.

**Now, now, I'm sorry to upset you. I don't mean to…I suppose they're keeping you here for a good reason. You are very eye-catching. What if someone were to see you? They'd know you in an instant.**

It was true. What if someone recognized her? Her master was in danger now that the Dark Lord had returned and as consequence, she had to be more careful. Was that why they kept her caged? She was so easily spotted. Although these dangerous times called for caution, she wanted to see Harry again.

Hedwig didn't lift up her head. And even if she could get a letter from Ron and/or Hermione, there was a chance of being caught trying to deliver the letter. She was just an owl! Hedwig was incapable of protecting herself. How useless. Her head was buried even further into her wing. How shameful! She couldn't do anything for her master. Nothing.

**Oh, please don't be sad-** a short tremor ran through the older bird's body before he could continue his words. How about if I told you that I know a way how you can get a message to Harry Potter? If you can't get a letter from those two younglings that came in, you could make your own.

'Make your own'? This part stood out in Hedwig's head and she gave an inquiring look to the bird trapped in a room but not in a cage.

**I'm not your ordinary bird. You could say, I became a bird in order to help defeat the Dark Lord as a spy but**…He lifted up a wing. **The effects are…permanent. I'm not sure how it'd affect a bird though. But I suppose, if you were human, you could get to your master all in good time. Better than staying here, right?**

What was his game? Hedwig didn't trust him now. The owl across from her was once a human? Impossible! Seeing the distrust in her eyes, the old bird started to explain the process.

**The spell can be preformed by me, but not on me. Not anymore. This spell only works once on a person. That's why I was stuck like this. We make sacrifices and by my form I was able to help save many families condemned to die for defying Vo…**the name died on his lips. **Well, you get the picture. I promise it won't hurt.**

This could work! This could work and Hedwig would be able to find Harry. She could even get a letter to the boy by making it herself. Joy! Hedwig started to become enthusiastic at the idea. Even if she risked loosing her form forever, she'd be happy just knowing that she did everything she could for her master's own happiness.

**Ah, but there is one…teeny, tiny, request that I have.**

A request? Hedwig almost refused the deal, but the desperate emotion she heard in his demeanor made her hear it out.

**I'm dying soon. There is no mistake about that. Severus Snape was a dear friend of mine. I used to despise him, but then I found out, there was really nothing to despise him for. He was just…lonely. And after I die, there won't be anyone for him. **

Hedwig started to ruffle her feathers in an unbecoming manner. Clearly she was offended at his words.

**I'm not asking you to replace your own master!** The brown owl seethed then settled down. **But you seem nice to talk to and Severus needs someone to listen to him. Really, he's not bad. Just…he was never given the chance. Would you give it to him? He just needs a friend.**

She cooled off and started to preen her feathers as if she didn't really need to think anything over. For a few moments the two were in deep silence wondering what to do next until the ancient bird continued on.

**I just want him to be happy.**

That was it. That phrase relaxed Hedwig a great deal. She could understand where the…owl man was coming from. The only thing in the world that would make Hedwig happy was for Harry to be happy. His happiness was the world to her and she would fight beak and talon for it. Now decided, Hedwig faced the other owl completely and stood ready.

**Thank you.**

What happened next couldn't really be explained. Not by any witch or sorcerer that would have been present, could have been present, none of them could have explained what happened. The cage of wire had been broken open and destroyed into so many smaller pieces and a myriad of feathers had surrounded the mute bird. A bright light white as the hottest fire burned brightly through the clothing of birds and when the feathers parted, the light started to dim and revealed the form of a young girl at the tender age of her late teens. White apparel suited her fair skin and her dark eyes that resembled so much of the owl that had been caged lit up when black jet locks of hair streamed to the side of her face. What had taken place of her wings was a long white cloak that hung from her shoulders.

**A snow outfit…how fitting.** The old owl seemed more worn out than usual as he surveyed the former bird. Hedwig wondered how she was able to understand his speech but she figured, once and owl, always an owl. She leaned over and stroked the dark feathers of the great bird as a 'thank you'.

**None of that now. You have to write a letter for Harry. Am I right? Get to it!** The owl spread its wings and glided to the other side of the room where Severus had laid down his parchment and quill before he left. **Use this, Use this! Can you write?**

Of course she could…not…Hedwig looked with confusion at the paper. Do the letters just form? She picked up the quill and started to run the tip against the dried bit of paper. The sound of popping reached her ears and when she actually paid attention to what she was doing, there was a fine row of holes made by the point of the quill.

.**…I'm assuming that you can't write. **

Hedwig lowered her head and shook it.

**Can you read at least? How else would you be able to give the notes?**

Finding that she now had the ability to nod she did so and made the motion of giving a sigh. She looked to the ground. Now how was she going to give a letter to Harry? She couldn't just walk up to Ron or Hermione demanding a letter.

Hedwig looked around when a green 'W' caught her eye. Using the fingers she now had, she picked up the cap Ron had dropped before he left. If she gave this to Harry then maybe he'd understand that his friends were alright.

She smiled as she held the cap close to her and stroked the owl once more.

**Don't forget! You have to take care of him!**

Giving a nod, Hedwig started to walk rather awkwardly with her new legs and before she knew it, she was stumbling forwards into warm robes.

"Perliman," An all too familiar voice called out. "I need you to send…"

Sirius' eyes looked at the hole-punched scraps of parchment then to the new person in front of him. His dark eyes narrowed at the intruder, but the old owl started to squawk and fly towards an empty cage.

"What?"

This wasn't good! If Sirius knew that she was who she was he wouldn't let her out! Hedwig pushed the man away and with the cap in hand started to dash down the stairs. If she was unsteady in the beginning, the running she was doing now was making her a quick learner.

The man was taken by surprise as he found himself falling backwards into several crates that had rotted over time making them breakable. The loud crash in the attic alerted the people downstairs of the ruckus taking place on the second floor.

"Sirius?" Remus' footsteps rushed upstairs and the werewolf found himself being hit back as well.

"Stop her, she's a spy!"

_Spy?_

Hedwig was just about to reach the main floor when Ron and Hermione took out her escape. In her panic she turned tail and started to run back up. This proved more difficult than going down and the climax of the stairs were wearing her down. Her tracks were stopped when a very angry animagus and a very confused Moony positioned themselves at the top of the stairs to trap her.

"Got her!" Ron made a fist of victory.

Trapped?…Hedwig looked to a nearby window and her owl instinct took over. Forgetting the fact that she didn't have wings anymore, the once-was owl tossed herself out of the window with a crash of glass and wood raining down behind her. Hedwig hit the ground and started to roll holding the treasure tightly lest she loose it. She sacrificed her very being for Harry and she'd sacrifice her health just to keep his smile going. Like the old owl mentioned, we make sacrifices. That was hers.


	2. Chick Flick

Author: Of Crimson Moonlight

Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns all characters from Harry Potter.

Chick Flick

"She's getting away!" Hermione screamed.

Hedwig slowly got to her feet in pain, and wondered why she had fallen. No wings…of course. Cold snow had broken her fall, but not enough to leave her uninjured. She started to limp away, but as if being a new human wasn't bad enough to affect her walking, a shard of glass had gotten into her arm and leg. She would have tried to take it out, but she had to run. If she was caught now, she wouldn't be able to see Harry anymore. He wouldn't want to see her ever again. That was too much! Sheer willpower alone kept her moving on and pushing herself to her limits. Finally, the screaming of Hermione had gone, and the pursuing footsteps had died. Hedwig sat down in the snow and waited for the pain to stop. She was so cold. In her owl form she was never cold! Hedwig tried to pull out the glass, but it hurt to touch it so she let the pieces stay where they were. The one on her leg had fallen out somehow but her arm was still in pain. She was bleeding too! She had never seen her own blood before and she tried hard to resist touching the liquid but her curiosity got the hold of her and a cold hand glided over the warm crimson.

At first the blood didn't bother her, but when Hedwig kept looking at it, the blood started to make her nervous. She turned her head away, and averted her eyes from the red that contrasted her white color so greatly. A few moments in the cold, instead of feeling eagerness to find Harry, Hedwig started to feel tired. She didn't understand why, but her eyes didn't want to stay open as the cold started to numb her senses.

Hedwig started to nod into sleep. If it weren't for the cap in her hand reminding her of her mission, she would have frozen to death. She couldn't sleep now. Harry needed something from his friends. The cold had numbed the pain, and Hedwig was able to ignore the screams in her mind that something was wrong. The color wouldn't be as easy to overlook, but if she kept her cloak around it she'd be able to turn a blind eye to it.

A shove to her shoulder made her stumble a bit as a proud and haughty voice yelled, "Watch it, mug…"

Hedwig looked to the boy who had shouted at her. He had blond hair and icy greater-than-thou eyes. His posture seemed to loom over her as his gaze didn't allow her to squirm away.

Rather than doing that, Hedwig straightened herself up and bowed to show an apology.

"Wait, are you mute?"

She nodded.

"…There's a certain magical quality about you. You're not a muggle, are you?"

The shake of her head affirmed the boy's thoughts and he smirked.

"Not even human…an animal in human form, perhaps. I can smell the transformation spell on you."

_How do you smell a transformations spell? Pfft. He's lying. _Hedwig didn't want to stay long. She had to find out her surroundings.

"Well then, don't you tell anyone that you saw me, got it?"

To the boy's shock, the girl was already leaving. She honestly couldn't care less?

"W-wait! How dare you turn away! Have you any idea who I am?"

She didn't turn around.

"Hold on a moment!" The blond grabbed Hedwig's good arm, thankfully, and stopped her. "Are you lost?"

Hedwig didn't want to admit it, but, from the ground view, she couldn't find the church steeple that she would use as a checkpoint. She timidly nodded her head.

"You are. How about we make a deal?"

A deal? She looked to the boy and tilted her head.

"Look…as much as it pains me to say this, these muggles, seem to have made a movie…not that I'm interested in muggle pastimes or inventions, but there's supposedly a good show and everyone talks about it so it has aroused my curiosity. I hear it's also pathetic to see one of this…moo-vs alone, so if you scratch my back, I'll scratch yours."

_Why would I want anyone to scratch my back?_ Hedwig sighed then walked behind the boy and started to scratch.

"Ow!" The boy backed off and rubbed the sore part of his shoulder. "Not literally, geez. What animal were you, a stupid sheep?"

A sheep! Sheep were probably the most stupid of the whole lot! Hedwig took offense at this and turned around.

Seeing the change of attitude the boy started to plead. "Alright, I'm sorry. I didn't mean it. Please come with me?"

The boy's manner seemed to be sincere and Hedwig knew that without his help she'd probably never find her way. She reluctantly gave a nod and the boy smirked. Did he never smile?

When they got to the theatres, the boy purchased both the tickets for a movie called **Till The End of Summers**. Hedwig seemed to remember the title but she couldn't place in her mind the origin. When the story started to unravel, she remembered. Hermione had gone very gushy after she saw this movie. It was a…as her master had called it, a 'chick flick' was that what it was called? Hedwig looked to the blond seated next to her as he examined the movie food in front of him. Yellow stuff that was literally swimming in butter and drowning in salt.

"Disgusting stuff. Honestly, how do muggles stand this?" He said after he tasted it. The odd thing about his comment was that no matter how terrible he described it, the boy would keep popping the snack in his mouth. In fact, he loved it so much that he even got up several times during the movie. He ended up getting a larger batch of… 'popcorn'.

Hedwig started to focus on the story again after the boy's seventh trip. The language moved quickly, but she tried to keep up as best as she could. It was a love story. This movie couldn't interest her. The humans were too ugly. Not like her master at all, who was the very epitome of a knight. When the main character for the boy's part finally came onto screen, Hedwig's mouth opened. Not bad at all! Her mouth dropped open as she leaned forward in her seat. The man had the most beautiful beak-like nose in the world! And he even wore a coat that made it look like he had wings! Black wings! Oh happy day! Never had she seen a human look so wonderful before. Well, after her master of course. He gave the girl flowers, chocolate, candy…who would want food for a present? It was all about stones for owls. Not necessarily of rubies or diamonds, but the stone usually had something like a signature seal of the owl. That was what her kind exchanged. Why would you want presents that would die in the end, or end up being devoured? Hedwig concentrated on the end of the movie with her heart hurting for the young couple when the tragic finale came closer.

After a few scenes of separation the couple ended up being torn apart from each other. When they finally united the girl was injured and her light was fading.

**Leana:** _Knight! No! This was a trap! Why did you come? You knew, so why did you come?_

**Knight:** _Because I love you!_

**Leana:** _We're going to die here. I wanted you to live._

**Knight:** _Not without you. You're bleeding!_

**Leana:** _Please know that I always loved you…live on…for me…I wish we could go back in time. That summer when we first met…*Kisses Knight* Thank you…for everything._

Hedwig looked at the physical affection and tilted her head as the hero and the girl made contact through a soft…what was it…kiss? She even started to imitate the puckering motion without being conscious of it. It was simple, yet meaningful. Hedwig raised her fingers to her lips to touch them. How would that feel? Another empty bag of popcorn dropped to the ground when the blond leaned forward from his chair with his mouth open. His face was red and for a moment Hedwig was sure he had stopped breathing.

**Leana:** _*Dies*_

**Knight:** _Leana! Noooo!_

She died!

It was so cheesy, but so sad! Why couldn't they have their own happy ending? Hedwig did one thing that owl's never did. She started to cry. How sad…among the sea of girl viewers Hedwig started to cry with them. A girl even started to hand out tissues to everyone around her including Hedwig making everyone cry even more. Though the boy beside her refused to admit it, he had started to blubber in the end but he kept trying to justify his actions by saying he just got salt in his eye…although, that could be why.

"Let's go then." The boy said as he sniffled quietly as he put on his dark glasses. Why do humans wear glasses at night? It looked silly to Hedwig. "It's late out, but I should be able to get where you want to be. Just write it down where you want to go…wait. Can you even write? Ah, well. We'll find a way to communicate somehow. Honestly. You can find away to change your entire being and yet you can't talk?"

Did this boy every stop his criticisms?

"What a terrible ending for the film. Why do muggles like this stuff? The writers had every chance to make this a happy ending, but they refused. If I was in his position, I wouldn't have let her go from the beginning! That's what's different about us Malfoys. When we want something we don't let it go. Come on, then, don't just sit there looking at the credits."

The girl was enamored with the actor who played the main male character.

Hedwig stood up as the lights turned on and followed the boy. The only problem was, instead of her leg obeying her, she felt herself falling. The pain in her leg had returned and the numbness had melted away.

"Are you alright?" The boy asked. His face paled dramatically when he saw splotches of red on the girl's clothes. "You're bleeding!"

That was the last she heard when Hedwig blacked out for the first time in her life.

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Author's Note: If I make any mistakes, please feel free to point it out...in a gentle way if possible.


	3. Motivation

Author: Of Crimson Moonlight

Author's Note: Please note that I have no intention of pairing Hedwig with anybody, only casting her character as close friends with those who need it. Reviews do tend to help the mind work faster, so please consider.

Disclaimer: Harry Potter and its characters belong to the marvelous inspiring mind of J.K. Rowling.

Motivation

Severus Snape wasn't a complicated man. Not at all. He was a spy. Dumbledore's most trusted, closest, agent. Every day he risked his life for those around him…was that so complicated to understand? No, not that part. The part that made Lucius Malfoy so frustrated with his old friend, who was not very old, was that Severus Snape did not receive anything as reward or payment for putting his neck out on the chopping block. Lucius always got what he wanted. If he was going to put his life on the line for Dumbledore's pathetic Order of the Phoenix, then Merlin help him, he was going to get what he and his family needed. The Malfoy name had to be uplifted. Their expenses taken care of, their 'faults' in the past, overlooked and most of all, a place in the Ministry of Magic. He was one of the most powerful people. The very appearance of him, the sheer mention of his name demanded respect and dominance over myriads of people. This was the benefit of being a spy. This was where the profit lied. If just one man with a family of three could have so much then why was Severus Snape with nothing?

It was true that the man had his teaching position at Hogwarts, his manor, but let's face it. At least the Malfoy Family had honor, and not only that, a very catchy slogan. The Snape name, however, had no pride. No advantages. The only respect Snape ever got was from his students of the Slytherin House. Snape was in the most danger if he were to be discovered by Voldemort as a double agent. Before the tortures could come to mind, Lucius shut them out with thoughts of his family.

"Why are you doing this again?" Lucius swirled the wine glass in his hand and gave a bored look at the ex-death-eater. It had taken him all morning to find the bottle of wine in Hogwarts and he wasn't going to let a drop of it go to waste.

"It's what the Order needs."

"Severus…" Lucius crossed his legs and stroked the binding of a leather-bound book. "Why don't you stop thinking of what the Order needs, and start thinking about yourself?"

"Not until he's gone."

"You could be dead before he's gone." The beautiful blond man sat up and with a wave of his hand the book returned to its rightful place in the library. "What are you so afraid of?"

"I'm not-"

"Liar."

"Would you stop this?"

"I know you're not telling me the truth."

Severus started to mumble. "The moment I find something to cherish…it'll be taken away."

Lucius started to laugh. "You don't have to worry about my family."

"I don't." Snape said curtly.

"That hurt." The man sulked as Severus stood up from his chair.

"You know that's not what I meant." Severus continued, "I am confident in your skills as a wizard, and I know you can protect yourself and your family from any threat."

_Ah, you're thinking of Lily…_Lucius smirked. "You need another love, Severus."

Maybe it was what he needed, but he couldn't have it. Happiness seemed to flee from him. When Severus actually found something to be content with, it always vanished. That's when he came to the conclusion. Past mistakes can never heal. His decisions, his choices, they all led to what he is now. An unhappy man that would be alone for the rest of his life. The only one he had to blame for this was himself.

"I've told you all I know about our next operation. I'll be on my way if there's nothing else." Severus opened the door of the library. "You do know that the school year starts tomorrow? So I'd appreciate it if you got out before you-"

"Professor!" A very flustered Malfoy had his face so close to the older man that Severus almost lost his composure. Almost. Instead of stepping back he looked to the two things the boy was holding. He frowned at one of them. A portkey? How did the boy get a portkey to Hogwarts…Lucius. The other object in his hand made actually did make Severus stumble back.

"Draco? What are you doing-" Severus was cut off when Draco's father pushed him away and started to glower at his own flesh and blood.

"Father!" Draco, not in his wildest dreams, no, nightmares, could he have conjured the inconceivable thought that his father, out of all 365 days of the year chose to come on this night. The same night he had gone out from the safety and comfort of Malfoy Manor to see a muggle movie, was the same night that his father chose to visit his Potions Master. And if that wasn't horrifying enough, he was holding up a girl with one arm and struggling greatly. In his other hand was the very own portkey his father had made in case of emergencies. Well, to be on the safe side, a bleeding and unconscious girl _was_ an emergency, right?

"Please help!" Draco gasped as his arm started to go limp. He had been holding the girl up and dragging her to places where there'd be some privacy, but each time he was about to use the portkey, a group of drunk muggles would always stream by giving, him catcalls and the most obscene words! They had practically painted his face red! He had blushed so much this night!

Severus raised his arms and caught the girl's form before it hit the ground. Draco started to massage his arm while trying to avoid his father's glare.

"This girl…collapsed…and I felt that it was only right to help her…so…"

"Where?" Lucius crossed his arms. "Where were you?"

The young Malfoy heir lowered his head and made fists with his hands. "In-"

"Diagon Alley." Severus cut in. "The boy asked me if there was anything he could do for a better grade this year in my class. I told him if he ordered the ingredients for this year that goes into my personal storage, he'd get extra credits. Don't blame the boy for being an overachiever, Lucius. He's just like you when you were younger."

At these words, Draco's face shined like the sun.

Lucius' tense shoulders relaxed and he picked up his walking stick. "Very well…just be sure to tell me of these things before you leave the house, Draco. You know how your mother worries. She would have told me if you had left the house, and since I had no knowledge of this I'm sure she must be throwing a fit. That or other house elves out of the house."

Draco distinctly remembered a morning when his mother had failed to see him in his bed under multiple layers of blankets and cushions and started to literally turn the house upside down. Draco still saw the bed just moments before it crushed him. Luckily, a levitation spell learned in first year saved him. His shrieks caused his mother to crash through the upper walls of his room. Ever since then, his mother always woke him up with a kiss before rushing to conclusions.

"Who is she?" Lucius gave a nod towards the girl.

"Just someone I ran into." Draco said quickly. "Professor, will she be alright?"

"Such concern for others, Draco?" Severus asked. "How unlike you."

It wasn't that he was _concerned_ per se. If he didn't take the girl in, who knew what she'd do. She might go off to tell…er…communicate somehow to the world that Draco Malfoy was in love with a muggle actress. It was a disgrace!

"Well…I suppose…" Draco gave a noble look to hide his true feelings. Even if she didn't blab to everyone, not blab…ugh she can't even talk, but still. A deal was a deal. He intended to keep his promises.

"She'll be fine, but we should really put her into the infirmary. Madame Pomfrey shouldn't have a problem with a new arrival." Severus said.

"There you have it, Draco." Lucius pulled his son to him. "We must be on our way. Like you said, tomorrow is the start of the new school year."

"You're leaving her with me, aren't you?" Severus said without emotion.

"But I want to stay with her!" Draco said defensively. If she told the Potions Master, he'd tell his father! That was unacceptable!

While Draco was started to panic, his father was stunned by his son's fascination with this girl. He started to ponder whether the girl came from a good family or not. "You can see her tomorrow." Lucius decided.

"She should be up by then." Snape started to carry the girl then frowned. "Wait, why am I doing this?"

Draco opened his mouth to respond, but his father beat him to it. "Because this girl is important to Draco. Do it for him, would you?"

Severus actually showed emotion and pursed his lips in annoyance. "That has to be, in muggles' terms, the _lamest_ excuse you've ever given to me."

If it wasn't for Draco's heartbreaking expression, Severus would never have agreed. Actually, he would have just dropped the girl right then and there, but his godson's _forsake me not_ face overturned his cold demeanor and the Potions Master found himself walking towards Madame Pomfrey's offices after Draco and Lucius left. Hopefully the woman had returned a day early to set her things up for the year.

He looked at the girl with little interest, but once glance at her breathing pattern and he froze. It was weak! Her heart…Severus put his hand against where her heart should be and felt a large delay in between the beats. Come to think of it, when had she gotten so cold? Snape swore mentally and changed his destination. His own office was closer than Pomfrey's and judging by the ragged breaths of the girl she wasn't going to last. When he reached his desired location, Severus observed the girl and saw why she had paled drastically as he grabbed a potion to stop the bleeding. The girl's arm that had been pressed against him had several shards of glass. They'd been digging into her even more. Why hadn't she taken care of this sooner? She was cold as well. A wave of his hand towards the fireplace sparked light and the fire started to dance happily, heating every part of the room.

Snape opened a vial and started to poor the liquid down the parted lips of the girl. Instead of being swallowed the contents started to dribble down the girl's lips to the side of her neck. His anger ignited and he tried to keep himself from shouting. This was a hard potion to make and it was being wasted! One by one, using little concentration, the broken pieces of glass started to pull out of the girl. The bleeding continued quickly now.

"It can't be helped…stupid Malfoys." Severus put a mouthful of the draught into his mouth and leaned over the girl. As soon as his lips touched the girl's, they opened slightly. As if mocking him, the girl refused to swallow the potion and it shot back up. Severus found himself sputtering and coughing. This girl was impossible! It's like she didn't know how to swallow!

"You are going to drink this, and you're going to do it in one down!" Severus took what was left inside the vial and without hesitating he crashed his lips down and pushed to warming liquid into the girl's mouth. Ugh. He'd never live this down. Thank goodness he was in his own quarters. He felt the concoction draining as the girl started to respond. Once it was gone, Severus pulled back as if nothing had happened, but the moment he stole away from the closeness, the girl wrapped her arms around his neck. This had to be a farce!

As much as he tugged, the girl tightened her grip. She seemed to be dreaming of something…or someone. Instead of trying by force, Severus returned the embrace then slowly released. The girl seemed to follow suit and was laid down gently.

It was actually quite amusing. No one would dare touch the cold-hearted Potions Master of the dungeons. Yes, he knew what the students call him from behind the safety of their common rooms. Among these names, he knew of two others. 'Greasy Git' and 'the Bat'. Not one person would be caught dead giving the man any physical contact of affection yet this girl dared to give it. Even though it was unintentional, the man found that he rather enjoyed the feeling.

Snapping himself out of the thoughts of fond touch, he went to work and started to clean her wounds that, thanks to the potion, had stopped bleeding. The only problem now was her temperature. Her breathing was back to normal and her heart had returned to its usual pace, yet she was freezing. And what about her clothes? Severus decided to get uniforms of Hogwarts for the girl, but that would be later. For now the task was set before him and he had decided that failure to bring her back to health was not an option. Funny. He hadn't felt this motivated in a long time.


	4. More Like Her Heart

Author: Of Crimson Moonlight

Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns all characters from Harry Potter.

More Like Her Heart

"Severus!" Dumbledore chirped happily at the sight of the Professor. The Headmaster's attitude fell a bit when he saw the man's appearance. His hair was disheveled, his clothes were ruffled, and under his red-rimmed eyes were bags that even a man of the professor's age shouldn't have. "Rough night?"

"Nothing to be worried about, Albus."

The fatigue in the younger man's voice was obvious, but Severus didn't seem to be in a conversational mood, so Dumbledore nodded and started to beam. "The students have arrived, and what a group. Have you seen the first years?"

"Yes, Albus." Severus really didn't want to talk right now and yet the Headmaster insisted on keeping on the banter.

"Don't they look promising?"

Severus held his tongue from letting loose exactly what he thought about the new arrivals and said the exact opposite. He didn't even remember what he had said. All he knew was he lied along the lines of intelligent, eager to teach, and excited. He really couldn't care less. Where his thoughts were dwelling on right now was the girl that had been locked inside his room. He groaned. He still hadn't told Albus about the guest. Draco hadn't come to the school grounds just yet and the when the girl had woken up…Severus made a fist. After all he did to keep the girl alive, this was the thanks he got?

"Is something wrong with your nose?" Dumbledore was referring to a rather terrible red mark left on it.

"…" Severus ignored the question and quickly changed the subject to the new arrivals. After that, Dumbledore let out his thoughts on who would be placed where and forgot about the bruise on Severus' face.

Here is what had happened. The moment the girl had woken up, she seemed normal enough, but the moment Severus leaned forward to check her temperature with his hand the girl panicked and…bit him. Right on the nose! Feeling a strange sense of déjà vu, Severus rubbed the sore spot again. Hadn't this happened before?

The opening ceremony went the same as usual. Students from all different years flocked into the great hall while the new students who nervously waited to be called by McGonagall. Everyone's eyes were concentrated on the old sorting hat. Cries and shouts and approval were given out at the sound of house names. After all had been accounted for, after every student had been sorted, Severus' eyes were drawn to a very distraught looking Draco Malfoy.

What the boy was looking at, however, was a trio of Griffindors. Potter and his friend Granger were laughing together merrily while the Weasley boy seemed to be sulking. The red head gave an angry look to Malfoy then cowered when the blond scowled back. Though the Weasley turned back to his friends, Malfoy still seemed to be unnerved as he held something red in his hands. As Albus let out the welcoming feast, the boy made eye contact with his professor.

_He wants to see the girl…_Severus sighed. The food had become unappetizing to him and Malfoy didn't look as if he was going to eat anything until he got what he wanted. Slowly, he pushed back the plate of food that had appeared from nowhere and gave a gesture of the head to indicate the boy to follow him out of the hall. No one seemed to notice, except a very baffled Dumbledore.

As the two reached each other just outside the heavy doors of the dining hall, Malfoy desperately grabbed Severus' robes. "How is she?"

Severus pulled the boy's hands away and dusted himself off as if the boy's touch was dirty. No, it wasn't that. Severus wasn't used to the contact. "She's…well…"

"But?"

"She won't stand still. She keeps trying to escape. The girl even showed signs of aggression." Severus looked away to keep the sign of a sore nose away. Luckily, no one had commented on it, except for two people. One was Albus, and the second, a student who thought that he was blushing.

"Can I see her now?"

"Maybe you can calm her down. She's acting as if she was trapped in a cage. I can't get through to her."

Malfoy followed the professor to the dungeons of Hogwarts and as soon as Snape unlocked the door he quickly stepped back. A girl backed into a corner lifted her head up and upon seeing Draco she launched herself at the boy who actually hugged her.

She'd been crying. Hedwig decided she didn't like it anymore. Sure it was nice when watching the movie, but now, crying was making her eyes red, and her vision blurry. She wanted to stop being human. If she could only fly, she would have been able to jump out the window.

"Are you alright?" Draco asked kindly. This role didn't suit him at all, but he couldn't help but feel sorry for the girl.

Hedwig shook her head and started to sob some more. She started to make motions with her hands and kept on repeating them over and over again. She ran her hands over her head until Draco said that he understood.

"The hat right?" He asked.

The girl released Draco and nodded while burying her hands into her head. Without that hat she had no message. Without a message she couldn't see Harry. This brought her to tears once again as Draco started to rub her back. "It's alright. I know where it is."

Hedwig lifted her head up gradually.

It turns out that Draco had picked up the hat and put it in his pocket when she had blacked-out. The Malfoy had intentions on returning it to her but just as Potter and his group passed by during trip to Hogwarts, Draco saw something different about the Boy Who Lived. He had a different owl. When he made a comment about his old one wanting to get away from him, the Weasley was about to comment but he froze when he saw the article of clothing in Draco's hand. He started saying that the red cap in belonged to him. Two things connected to Draco's thoughts. The first connected the girl's appearance with the missing hat, and the second was a fist making hard contact with his face. Hermione grabbed Ron's hat and the two had a game of tug-of-war. Draco ended up winning, but if he wasn't so concerned about the girl he would have cast a spell on the three. Ever since realizing what the girl's problem was, he kept worrying. How was he going to break it to her that the Potter got himself a new owl?

"It's…" Shoot…the girl's eyes were so hopeful and that was going to shatter soon. "How about I give it to you now…and…"

It was better off that she didn't know now. If she knew the Golden Boy was here who knows what she would do? Not only that, Harry had brought his stupid owl to the Great Hall. One of the Weasley twins had egged him on to bring it. The owl was an unusual one with an 'X' on its back.

"And later, we'll go find the owner. But you have to heal your wounds first, alright?"

The girl didn't look so sure about the plan. Draco realized that her hair had been tied into a braid now and her white clothes had been cleaned. How could he have not realized sooner? A snow owl. Malfoy decided that it wasn't a good idea to tell her. He'd have to keep her from others spotting her. They might blab to her about the Potter kid being here. Draco handed the red cap with the green 'W' to the once owl with a forced smile.

"What was that whole lot with the Weasley boy? He was glaring at you while Potter and Granger minded their own business."

Draco mentally slapped himself. The one time the Potions Master actually cared about his social life was the one time he didn't want to hear it.

Hedwig looked excitedly. The great hall! He'd have to be there! She snatched the hat and ran out of the room.

"Hedwi-! N-" Draco yelled. "No! Wait, you don't understand!"

"Hed...win?" Severus was about to ask some questions of his own, but Draco had already gone after her. "Hedwin…doesn't that mean… 'Holy Peace'?" Severus straightened his robes. "…That name suits her not."

_He's here…He's here! _Hedwig slid down the hallway and came upon the great hall. With human strength that surpassed that of an owl, she forced both doors open. Not caring who was watching her now, her eyes skimmed across the tables and she started to run across the room to where every morning she'd deliver packages to her master.

A familiar sight caught her eye and she picked up the pace. Ignoring the new sensation of pain on her leg from pushing it too hard she made her way quickly to the view of unruly hair, a pair of glasses and a smile that warmed her heart every time she saw it. She stopped just behind the boy and reached out to touch his shoulder when a squawk reached her ears. Hedwig looked over Harry's shoulder to see another owl in a cage. Her hand fell short of the contact and she studied the new bird. Anger shot through her very being when she realized that the cage it was in was _hers_. What was that bird doing in _her_ cage?

"So she never came back then?"

"Yeah. Remus told me that she probably got loose, but since I needed an owl so soon, Padfoot got me another one."

Ron crammed food into his mouth while Hermione crinkled her nose in disgust. She turned away from the sight to say, "I think this owl's better."

_He… replaced me?_

Dean was the first to notice Hedwig. "Harry, look! It's another of your fans."

_He replaced me._

Her master turned around to look at a face he didn't recognize. "Can I help you?"

Hedwig wanted to ask if he recognized her, but she had no voice. And of course he didn't recognize her. She wasn't an owl anymore. _At least I can see him…_ At this, Hedwig would have given out a bitter laugh if she could. _Seeing him…he doesn't even know me._

"Maybe she wants an autograph." Ron said. When he looked at the girl his mouth dropped. "My hat!"

The boy took what was his from Hedwig and put it on. "Thanks!"

Hermione's mouth was open, but for a different reason. "You! Ron, it's her!"

"Who?"

Hedwig looked at the owl with a peculiar color.

"Hey, new girl," One of the Weasley twins grinned when he saw the new girl eyeing the bird. "Isn't this owl pretty?" Her heart hurt. Hedwig could feel herself about to cry again. She bit her lip to stop it from quaking as she continued to look at the owl. Her head bowed a bit before she nodded to answer the boy's question.

"There you are!" A hand gripped her and pulled her back.

When Hedwig turned to see the hand's owner, she saw a red Malfoy.

As soon as she turned her head, Malfoy saw the two tears fall. Her face wasn't scrunched up, but frighteningly emotionless. Besides the two discreet tears, the other reason he knew she was sad was because of the strained breathing. It showed how hard she was trying not to show her emotions. Hesitantly, Draco wiped away the tears and started to walk the girl away after shooting Harry a murderous look. "I'm sorry."

"I think you have the wrong person, Mione." Ron asked.

"Are you saying that I'm _wrong_?"

Everyone scooted away from the two knowing what was going to happen. Hermione was going to explode.

"That girl…" Nevil commented. "Was her leg bleeding?"

"More like her heart." Luna said as she took a scoop of pudding and put in into her mouth leaving the others to ponder what she had said. Harry on the other hand didn't pay attention to her words at all and started to dig into his plate.

As Severus crept back into the hall by different means, he watched as the upper classmen made the new recruits comfortable by interacting with them. Grabbing for a few spices to add to his meal he glanced towards the seat where his godson was supposed to be seated, but the boy wasn't there. Nor was he to be seen anywhere in the dining hall. A bit annoyed at the boy's absence, he decided to ignore it for now. The boy was dealing with the girl for now…for some reason, Severus kept getting the feeling that the girl was older than she looked. On the other hand, her behavior towards him was rather naïve. Pushing it out of his mind he looked down and started to neatly cut the portions of food on his plate.

The whole hall seemed to be cheerful and there were talks of how splendid everything was going. Children started to quickly make friends hoping that these relationships would be everlasting while some spoke about the enchanted ceiling. Among all the chattering, not one of them brought up the subject about the girl who had dared to walk up to THE Harry Potter. The subject would be talked about sooner or later, but for tonight they would dine and be merry. Let the Potter Fan Club worry about her later. Not one of them showed any knowledge about a crying girl outside the steps of Hogwarts being comforted by a blond Slytherin.

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Author's Note: Thank you for the reviews! It gives me the will to write faster.


	5. So It Seems

Author: Of Crimson Moonlight

Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns all characters from Harry Potter.

**What It Seems**

Severus monitored the activities of his students as he strolled around the room looking over the cauldrons. A foul odor didn't surprise him, but where it came from did. "Mr. Malfoy."

The boy jolted from his daydream. "Sir?"

The professor frowned. He knew exactly where the boy's mind was but the question was how to get it into the classroom where it belonged.

"I'd appreciate it if you kept your attention on your work for the safety of us all." Several Griffindors started to laugh.

Malfoy nodded with a depressed, 'Yes, sir'.

Usually, Severus wouldn't openly abuse Malfoy in class but this was the sixth batch of ingredients he'd wasted.

"After class, Mr. Malfoy."

The Potions Master returned to his seat and waited for the minutes to go by. Just as the clock was about to allow the students to go and explosion rang out and to the professor's delight it wasn't his godson that had made the mistake, but his archenemy's son. "Potter, detention tomorrow. Class dismissed."

Now his day was complete. Nothing could destroy this happy mood. He even got a look of hatred from the Golden Boy.

"Sir?"

"Draco," Snape looked at the boy with just a bit of concern showing for him. "You…look…" _Terrible._ "…well."

"I need to ask you a favor." His eyes were pained. "Please help."

Severus pretended not to care. It wouldn't do if his reputation was ruined. Keeping a monotone voice he answered. "With what?"

"When someone's heartbroken, the best thing to do is keep their mind off of things right? Like work or something fun?"

"Yes…" Snape didn't like where this conversation was headed, but it was true. When he was heartbroken, he would drown himself in research and work. Anything would do, if it got his mind away from Lily.

"I have classes."

"Of course."

"You have no more classes after this."

"Thank the Heavens."

Draco looked at his godfather expectantly and that's when Snape understood.

"No."

"Please?"

"You'd have a better chance in killing a werewolf. No."

"Please!"

"Try to concentrate on your studies more, good day, Mr. Malfoy."

"I can't when I know she's not feeling well."

"Why do you care so much about her?"

"Because I think she's my first actual friend!" Draco yelled out.

Severus' hands gripped a quill he had been holding tightly. "Crabbe and Goyle?"

"This is different." Draco said. Unlike Crabbe and Goyle, the two would never have gone with him to see a muggle movie. A girl's movie no less, and if they had known, he was sure that the two would have spoke about it. Hedwig, didn't care and seemed to accept him. She needed him. "Please?"

This was the second favor Draco had asked of Severus.

The boy turned around and started to walk away in despair when Severus called out.

"Where should I take her?"

This was ridiculous. Severus found himself in a _muggle_ theatre watching a _muggle_ movie, eating _muggle_ food. Draco had insisted that he take the girl to a movie and buy her popcorn. When Severus found the girl, she was at the tower sitting around the owls that seemed to have taken a liking to her. She hadn't eaten anything and she didn't even have a blanket with her. According to Draco, the girl had sat there all night. That was why his godson had looked so poorly this afternoon. He had stayed in the tower waiting for her to come down. Draco bribed the girl with a movie. This was her choice of film, and that was how Snape found himself watching **Till The End of Summers**

**Leana:** _Don't leave, Knight._

**Knight:** _I'll find you, I promise!_

**Leana:** _If you go you'll be killed!_

**Knight:** _No I won't._

**Leana:** _You, fool. What are you saying? He has a thousand followers!_

**Knight:** _I have something to protect now. It's you._

Snape found himself in a sea of swooning girls.

_I…I'm the only guy here,_ he realized. Snape groaned and sunk lower into his chair while pushing sunglasses to his face. He pulled his cap over lower over his eyes. This was very close to one of his worst memories with James Potter. Very…VERY close.

By the end of the movie, Hedwig was mouthing Leana's words when she said "I love you." and Snape's eye was twitching.

The movie's ending…wasn't that bad. Tragic, but not terrible. It would bethe end of summers if someone you loved died.

So the ending wasn't why his eye was twitching. It was twitching because the girl to his right started randomly handing out tissue, and this event started to make all the girls around him cry even more. He froze when the sound of a blowing nose came frighteningly close to his ear.

"Would you stop your unbearable sniveling? If you find the need to relieve yourself of human fluid then do so in another direction. Here's a suggestion, _away_ from _me_!" Severus stood up and put his hands on his hips, frowning at the girl.

Hedwig looked up at the upset professor. She'd never seen him loose his…Hedwig thought of a word humans used…she'd never seen him loose his 'cool' before. He was causing a scene! How embarrassing. The movie had taken her mind off her previous master and now the uproar that the teacher was causing occupied her thoughts. She grabbed his arm and started to pull him into his chair but as the lights came on, several girls started to gasp when they saw the man.

"It's…" One of the girl's dropped popcorn from their mouths in mid chew.

Hedwig couldn't get the man to sit down so she stood up while holding a bag of popcorn that she had hoped to take to Hogwarts for the boy that had been kind to her.

Another girl's mouth dropped and Snape was horrified to see the substance of the girl's meal in her mouth.

"For crying out loud, chew your food!" He shouted.

"IT'S HIM!" A girl yelled.

"Knight!" Screamed the girl next to him.

"Are you sure?" Someone else asked.

"Look at the nose! It has to be!"

_Nose?_ Hedwig turned to get a better glimpse of the Professor. Ah, it was true. The man had Knight's nose, but the thought of this man dying for someone was inconceivable to Hedwig. She started to make the motions of laughter, which made Severus actually look at the girl with interest.

"Knight!" A fangirl yelled. "Knight! I love you! An autograph, please!"

"Back off, blondie! I was here first!"

"I'm not blond! I'm a brunette!"

A fight broke out. An actually fight! More than a fight, a riot! Girls were hitting, slapping, scratching, everything. Some were even jumping off their rows to get closer to 'Knight'.

Swearing loudly for the whole auditorium to hear, Severus gripped the girl's wrist and started to jump the rows of chairs. "I'm not him!"

"Grab him girls!"

With frightening speed, the girls started to lunge at the object of their desire. But with impressive and elusive skills, Severus managed to avoid all their advances.

"He's so cool!"

"Knight! Let me be your Leana!"

_Humans…are…scary._ Hedwig concluded. The wind was rushing past her face and the cool night's air touched her cheeks as the two burst out of the movies with screaming girls following them. It didn't take long, but Hedwig realized that she had felt this sensation before. The speed they were going at…the thrill of the event…if she closed her eyes, she could imagine that she was flying again. A smile rose from her lips.

"Now!"

A sharp jerk on her arm and Severus had pulled the girl close to him in an alley. The two faced each other as the ground started to shake. By shear luck, the crowd of Knight-lovers passed the hiding place.

Come to think of it, this moment reminded Hedwig of a dream she had. It was the time she had passed out. She had a very nice dream. Someone had been holding her. Maybe it was a dream about her own Knight. She was pretty sure that somewhere in the dream they had kissed. Hedwig raised her arms and gripped the man the same way. This hug felt so nice. It was warm too.

Severus didn't understand. She was holding onto him too? He lifted up his hand and was about to rest it on the girl's head but he stopped himself. This was getting very…odd. He chose this word to express the warm feeling in his heart instead of choosing the right word. Snape feared that if he even showed a bit of happiness, something would take it away. So instead of listening to that thought, he buried it. Who would ever…in their right mind…

"Banshees." He pulled away quickly from the girl and readjusted his clothes. Severus looked at her, but didn't get her attention. She seemed to be preoccupied with an empty popcorn bag. At this time, Severus decided to actually use her name. "Hedwin."

The girl's head shot up with a confused look.

"So, you're mute."

He didn't have to rub it in…Hedwig looked down and the spilled popcorn. Did he say her name wrong on purpose? With great shyness she started to step on the popcorn. Her curiosity was satisfied when she heard a crunching noise that didn't come from the snow. Popcorn was a very funny thing. It was a marvel how they turn corn into something like this. Pop…corn. But now she had a dilemma. How would she get some more? She really wanted to give some to Draco. He seemed to like it that time they went to the movies.

"What?" In a rare turn of events, Severus found himself being the one to talk the most in a conversation for the very first time.

Hedwig lifted up the empty paper bag to show her problem.

Snape realized that due to their rushed escape, the snack been diminished to only a few kernels of corn. It was only courteous to make it up to her.

First, it was a muggle theatre. Now this? After the chase, he and the girl had gone to buy popcorn, but what they got was…something, but it wasn't popcorn. Snape also allowed the girl to get reading material so that she'd be preoccupied with something to do instead of mope around all day. What she chose was the book form of the movie they had just watched.

Everything was well and good, but now, the Potions Master found himself looking at a flat bag that was supposed to be popcorn. The pair was in Snape's quarters and they were both trying to understand how muggle popcorn was made. When they opened the first bag, all that was in it were seeds! The one they were looking at now was their second attempt to understand muggle food.

"This…looks nothing like the popcorn made in the theatres." Snape said.

Hedwig looked at the side of it where instructions had been printed and showed it to the Professor.

After reading it over Snape's frown increased. "What the **** is a microwave?"

This was the first time Hedwig heard the man use such language! She had thought that he'd be more composed, but apparently, the man was…really just a man.

"It says heat…so maybe…" Severus pointed his want at the small bag of 'popcorn' and with a shout he gave out an incantation, but just as he did so, the door opened.

"Professor!" Malfoy's sudden entrance broke the Potion Master's concentration and spell set the bag aflame.

The fire jumped from area to area and Malfoy started to panic. "I'm sorry! I'm sorry!"

After a few water based spells, and after the fire had jumped from the table to the couch, three very soaked people sat down on what was now a charcoal chaise.

Hedwig sneezed.

"Bless you." The two others in the room said in sync.

Malfoy was touched when he heard from Severus that Hedwin (why had he called her Hedwin?) wanted to give him popcorn.

Seeing that this meeting was going to take a while, Severus put a kettle over the fire (this was in the fireplace, not on the table). As he was making tea, Hedwig took out the book she had gotten at the store and handed it to Malfoy.

The boy turned red as he gingerly took the book. "You got this for me?"

Hedwig smiled. She wanted to tell him she hoped he liked it, but she couldn't.

"Ah," Malfoy checked his person for a quill and a piece of parchment. "Here. Write it down."

At this, it was Hedwig's turn to blush. She didn't know how. A few slashes of the pen and the parchment was reduced to several pieces.

"I see." Malfoy looked at the leftovers then to Hedwig. She covered her face in her hands. "W-wait, it's not that bad! Really!"

Severus levitated a tray with a tea set and set it on the part of the table that wasn't charred. "What?"

"Ah, she can't write…" Draco explained. "She can read, though. That's good."

The compliment didn't help Hedwig but what Severus said did.

"Some people understand a language yet they can't speak it." Severus offered the two a cup then took one up himself. After a long silence he said, "If you like, I could teach you."

Hedwig looked up from the cup hopefully, but Draco scowled. "I don't think so."

The two turned towards Draco for a reason to his objection.

"You're a tough teacher. You'll be too hard on her and she'll cry."

"Well, I'm not going to go easy." Snape put the cup to his lips. "Given the chance, I think…we could try to teach her how to speak."

Hedwig sat up and leaned forward.

Malfoy however shook his head. "I don't think that's possible." Teaching a bird to speak?

"Why not? She's not a muggle is she?"

"Well, no…but…"

"I don't see a problem."

Hedwig tugged at Malfoy's sleeve. She wanted to learn!

"What aren't you telling me?" Severus asked as he lifted a brow.

Malfoy cleared his throat then gave a wary look to Snape.

Snape sighed and then looked to the girl. "I just remembered. You don't have any sleepwear, do you?"

Hedwig motioned to her own clothes.

Severus' brow knit and he motioned to the doors. "In there, look through the drawers in the room. Find something small enough for you to wear tonight."

Malfoy kept motioning with his head but Severus ignored him till the girl disappeared.

"Professor!" Draco shouted a bit. "She doesn't understand these things."

"What things do you mean?"

"She's different."

"How so?"

"I can't explain it."

"Try." Severus said.

"She's not…completely…"

"Faster, Mr. Malfoy."

"She was an owl!"

Snape's glass clinked as he almost dropped it. "What?"

"I don't know how, but somehow, when I met her she had the residue of a transformation spell. She used to be an owl. Potter's owl. It sounds crazy, but please believe me-"

"Perliman." Snape said in a pained tone. "That idiot."

"Perliman, sir?" Malfoy asked.

A knock came from Severus' front door. The two looked at each other with a nervous glance. It was pass curfew and if Draco was seen he'd cost Slytherin points. Draco walked to the washroom to hide while Severus hurried to answer the door. McGonagall and Dumbledore hurried into the room with worried glances.

"Severus." Dumbledore said. "We have some terrible news…"

McGonagall was in her night robes and her dark hair had been loosed. It was obvious to say that she was woken up from her sleep. Albus on the other hand looked perfectly normal. Maybe he really didn't sleep. "What is it?"

"We hear that you-know-who is on the move. He's going to strike tomorrow night. I want you to be there when he does and give us the names of some those you see." Dumbledore ordered.

_It doesn't really matter…whether I want to or not. I don't mind risking my life. I really don't but…doesn't anyone care to hear me out? Or is that too selfish of someone like me? After what I've done…_

"Severus?" McGonagall asked kindly.

"I will go. Tomorrow then." Severus answered. "If that is all…"

"Perliman…he died." Minerva said with her most compassionate tone.

Severus didn't show his emotions. He knew why Perliman died. That spell…the transformation spell cuts away a persons life. The caster always dies right after they cast the spell. _Perliman, you idiot…you didn't even bother to say good-bye._ "He was old. Are we done here?"

"Yes…" Albus and McGonagall rose to leave, but just as they were at the very threshold, the door to Severus' private chambers opened and Snape put on a horrified expression. There, in his old school robes and school attire, Hedwig was standing.

The situation was bad.

"Severus?"

"Yes, Headmaster?"

"A student just came out from your bedchambers."

"So it seems, Headmaster."

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Author's Note: Thank you for the reviews, it's so encouraging. Please feel free to review some more! It really lifts my spirits.


	6. Dropped Bottles Of Ink

Author: Of Crimson Moonlight

Disclaimer: Harry Potter and all its characters belong to J.K. Rowling

**Dropped Bottles of Ink **

"Severus…" McGonagall was one of the very few people in the world who trusted Severus. Him, being one of her old students, gave a teacher student bond. Over the years of knowing this man, this kind of behavior with a student was out of the question! But of course, she shouldn't jump to conclusions…the woman started to remember the girl's face. She was the one who walked up to Mr. Potter in the dining hall. Funny. McGonagall was very good with faces and memories, but she couldn't recall the name of the girl, nor seeing her in the welcoming ceremony. "Is there an explanation to this?"

Snape understood where the other two were coming from. Well, if he were in their shoes he'd be flabbergasted. Shocked. Outraged. He guessed that he could give an explanation but…if he labeled her, wouldn't people still get the wrong impression? Well, he did bring this upon himself by ordering her to change. And…though he didn't mean to think upon it, the girl looked good in his old Slytherin uniforms.

"She's…" He started.

"You're squeeze?"

Draco made a small gasp from the bathroom. He never expected the Headmaster to be so…so forward! And where had he learned that word?

"My…"

"Sugar Baby."

The Malfoy slapped himself on the forehead. _McGonagall too?_

Severus frowned. But the Headmaster pulled out a book with the title, Muggle Slang.

"Babe? Chica? Shorty? Sexy Mama? Foxy Lady?" Albus was running through the pages trying to find a suitable word for the girl.

"Assistant! She's my assistant!" Severus yelled while a very, very faint tinge of pink swept across his face.

Professor McGonagall rested her chin on her hand. "I never knew you were into that…roleplay. Is that what it's called?"

"Nor did I…well, Severus…whatever…" The Headmaster coughed slightly and started to flip a page back and forth until he found something. "Whatever tickles your pickle…"

"Out!" Severus shouted. "And we aren't doing anything what your shockingly twisted minds are thinking of, and I insist that you look up the word 'assistant' it seems you two are getting the wrong idea."

Severus was actually pushing the two elders out. The force was hard enough to get them moving but not enough to bruise.

"Severus, you should educate yourselves on this new language. Young, hip and cool words. Perhaps you can better understand your …assistant." Albus smiled.

"That won't be necessary, she's mute."

"At least it'll be quiet." McGonagall commented.

"_What will be quiet_?" Shouted Severus.

The two shot him a mischievous glare.

"Or for Merlin's sake." Snape finally got the two out of the room, "She'll be helping me with my class. That's _all_!"

"Well, we'll get her a seat at the Professors' Table." Albus offered right before Severus shut the door.

By the time Snape processed the sentence and had time to shoot down the idea, the outside of his room was empty when he reopened the door. "Won't be neces-…"

With anger, Severus slammed the door shut. When he turned around, he saw something that irritated him even more than the childish behavior of his mentors. There, on the table that had now been repaired along with the couch, probably thanks to Albus (The man did have his uses), was the wretched book of slang. He looked at it with loathing, but before he had the chance to disintegrate it, the book was picked up by Hedwig. She started to run her fingers on the pages eagerly. Seeing her excitement, the professor didn't have the heart to take it away and, therefore, decided he would tolerate the book…for now.

"Draco," Severus called out. "It's time to go. I don't think I can babysit your friend any longer."

The boy came out with a frantic expression. "B-but you have too! I can't watch her!"

"She's not my responsibility."

"She is now! You said she was your assistant!" Draco fumed. "And besides, I can't drag her to classes with me!"

"Do you not see the difficult position you are putting me in?" Severus roared.

"Yes…and I'm sorry but…" Draco mumbled. "Please?"

"Not falling for it." Severus levitated the tray of tea to the kitchen. "You used that one already."

"You don't care for her? Not even a little bit?" Draco asked.

"She's not a dog, Draco." Severus answered. "You can't just pick her up off the streets and call her yours." _Not a dog, an owl. Now she wasn't even that._

"Well what do we do with her then?" The boy was flustered now. He hadn't expected his godfather to be so heartless.

"Not. My. Problem." Severus gritted his teeth. "I've done what you asked of me. Her wounds have healed, I took her out, I'm done with her."

"So that's how it is?" Draco was hurt. Severus didn't care about the things important to him. Draco supposed he was being selfish a bit, but he saw it as being selfish for Hedwig. Not himself. With that feeling, Draco had thought that his cherished godfather would actually connect with Hedwig being abandoned herself. "I was only thinking of you. Hedwig, let's go."

"You are my charge, not her!" Severus shouted.

By this time, Hedwig understood she wasn't wanted and had already changed out of Severus' old clothes. She folded them as best she could. She gingerly handed them to the professor who just looked away and headed towards his inner chambers. "You know the way out."

The day that had started out so wonderful had died out and the fake happiness that had come, revealed itself to be only an illusion of what could never exist. Who ever heard of a happy world?

When the two reached the Slytherin common room Draco surprised his followers when he brought in the quiet girl. Draco left the girl in the common room for everyone to steal glances. They were all shocked when he came out in his sleepwear with a pair of pillows and blankets.

"Draco?" Pansy Parkinson had to stop herself from saying a term of endearment. "What are you doing?"

"I'm going to sleep in the common room." Draco handed Hedwig a pillow and a blanket. "Get off the couch, you idiot." He barked the orders to a very confused Goyle.

Draco was acting so strange. First he skipped the welcoming feast, and then today he was so ruffled and kept asking when Professor Snape would return. He was so spaced out that he didn't even notice that the Weasley boy had thrown an insult. And now, Draco was leading a girl who definitely was not a Slytherin into the _Slytherin_ common room.

"What?" Draco yelled. "It's not like she can go into the boys dormitory."

At this everyone's mouth dropped.

"D-Draco," Crabbe muttered quietly. "She was trying to talk to Potter. She's one of his friends."

"Not anymore." Draco snarled.

This caught Hedwig's attention.

The blond looked at her and grabbed her hands in his and looked at her with determination. "Anyone who mistreats you like that…can't be your friend. You aren't allowed to talk to him, do you understand?"

Hedwig was infuriated, but when she kept Draco's gaze she understood. He was trying to protect her. Her eyes gave out a sad look of understanding and then her lips raised into a sad smile. Draco wasn't trying to replace Harry. He was trying to be her friend. After understanding this, Hedwig nodded and gripped Draco's hand.

This act made everyone in the room freeze. Draco understood but didn't bother explaining to the other people, nor was he in the mood to tell anyone that he went to see an effeminate film. He fluffed the pillow and pushed Hedwig on the couch. "You're sleeping there. I'll sleep on the flo-no. Crabbe, get off."

The young heir pulled his other henchman off the other couch and lay down. When the presence of the other people started to irritate him, Draco shouted, "What? If you're not going to sleep then get out!"

Pansy Parkinson bit her lower lip then made up her mind. "Fine. I'm sleeping here."

"Yeah!" Goyle nodded and Crabbe followed suit.

"Hey! A co-ed slumber party in the common room?"

"Sounds fun!"

The boys and girls immediately jumped on the idea. While Draco grumbled to himself in his thoughts how his godfather abandoned him, Hedwig listened to ghost stories with wide eyes. In the dark corners of the room some of the couples were holding each other close and friends had clustered to tell secrets.

One of the girls was holding a giant poster of a man that Hedwig had seen. The owl girl started to look at the picture of the man she had seen in the movies and pointed to it.

"You like Knight also?" The girl squealed. "Isn't he beautiful?"

Hedwig couldn't stop looking at the fantastic pose of the beautiful being.

"I have a smaller version of this picture. You can have it. I have, like, fifty of them." The girl pulled out a tiny wallet sized picture of the dazzling man. Hedwig was ecstatic! She cradled the precious item in her hands gently as the other girl continued on her love for the actor. "I absolutely love him. I hope someday to slip him a love potion! Then we can snog…ah! I want to be with him. Ha! I'd kiss him any day! He's worth saving a first kiss for. Too bad I've already snogged someone else. Don't you agree he's worth it?"

Hedwig nodded. So kisses were also signs of affection. She had thought they were only to express gratitude or welcome. Hedwig was sure she was just hoping, but she's certainly never kissed anyone before, so maybe she has a chance on giving her first kiss to Knight! That is, if she ever found him. If only she could fly to him.

"Speaking of kisses, let's play 'spin the bottle'!"

Malfoy groaned and pulled the cushions over his head. He turned to give an apologetic look to Hedwig, but the girl, to his comfort, had begun to slumber. He gave a smile and turned to his side waiting for sleep to claim him.

Unlike Hedwig, sleep wasn't coming for him. Instead, Malfoy found himself being dragged out from the warm blankets and into a swarm of people hoping to lock lips with him.

And this night could have gone so well. Draco groaned.

The next morning, a few students had terrible hangovers from the night before. These were the upper classmen, but no one dared to point out the obvious fact. Several fits of laughter rose in the air when someone started to snore.

Everyone had had a great sleep. The room was in disorder, but that was only a small price to pay for the happiness of children who would never get the chance to be young again. The fire had long died down, the cards put away. Blankets covering twelve feet were thrown about and drinks from the party had been emptied when toppled over. A few crumbs of food lay scattered and even a chair had been cut in half but everyone was in a fantastic mood.

That fantastic mood kept up even into the great hall for breakfast. The Slytherins were all smiling and chatting about the festivities of the night before while the other houses tried to ignore, but the stories being told were too unbelievable to not listen.

Draco gave a glance to the Professor's table, but the man he was trying-but-not-wanting to see wasn't there. Where was he?

Hedwig copied how everyone held their utensils and started to follow their actions. This was the first time she had eaten anything besides popcorn and using a knife was harder than it looked.

"Let me cut it for you." Draco took the knife and the bread. "Cut it slowly…then add the butter."

Draco handed the roll of baked goodness and set the knife down making the Slytherins wondering what the relationship between the two was.

"Potions class first." Draco said as the time approached for the class. "Look…" Draco said apologetically. "I don't think you should come with me to class, so maybe…I don't know, browse around the castle. I wish I could be with you, but…"

Hedwig grabbed Draco's flailing hands to calm him down and smiled. She understood. It'd be distracting for Draco to always be looking over his shoulder checking up on her.

"Draco." That silky, smooth voice that had rule over every aspect of Draco's life. Draco's shoulders dropped expressing his rainy mood.

"Mother? What are you doing here?" Draco was trying so hard not to show his horror.

"How touched I am that you are so overwhelmed with love for your mother. You're face conveys the surprise and delight of the gracing of my presence." A very thin and petite woman gestured greatly with her hands as she enunciated every word. "Your Headmaster asked me to take over a class for the day. The Potions Class. Professor Snape won't be in…" Her eyes looked to the girl next to her son holding his hands. "Dear Draco, who is this?"

The woman crossed her arms and tilted her head as she scrutinized the girl.

"A friend, mother." Draco pulled his hands away and started to push Hedwig down the hall. "I'll meet you in the library."

Mrs. Malfoy wasn't smiling.

Draco was ushered into the classroom by the woman who gave him life as Hedwig tried to find something else to pass the time.

Severus forced himself to listen to the screams as the people he couldn't save began to burn. The circle of deatheaters raised their masks to smile openly at the bonfire of innocents. He wouldn't tear his eyes away. He wouldn't. Instead of raising his mask, the man kept his down lest his face show his true emotions. Snape shifted his eyes to see Lucius with his mask off playing the perfect pet for Voldemort. It was so easy for the prestigious man to act his part. Lucius had the cold stare yet smirking lips that showed the satisfaction from the cries. It was frightening sometimes, how the man transformed and switched roles.

"Enjoying yourself, Severus?" The snake-like speaker hissed in his ear.

"I have not felt like this in years." Severus admitted to his master. _Why…why couldn't he have stayed dead?_ The pain in the dying cries, the burning bodies…he wanted it all to go away.

"Are you so certain Dumbledore will not be suspicious if you suddenly take off from your profession?" Voldemort's eyes reflected the orange light coming from the fire.

"He is old as he is trusting." Severus gathered his hands into his sleeves. "The wizard has already let his guard down…for now."

Voldemort gave a proud look to his deatheater then smiled. "I admit, for a moment, I doubted you. Today, you have demonstrated where your loyalties lie. I believe…a reward is in order."

"Being able to witness your return to power is reward enough, my lord."

"So humble. I insist. A slave perhaps? Do you need assistance in that accursed school? You've done so much tonight."

A slave would mean that another person would lose their life. Severus refrained from making any movement that would betray his true feelings on the idea. "I…"

"You would refuse my generosity?" This was said with growing anger.

"My lord!" Lucius stepped in with caution but quickly enough to take attention away from Severus. The ring of deatheaters continued to face the fire, but they were holding their breaths. "Please, do not mistake Severus's hesitation for insolence, but it is not as you see it. He…already has one. A slave….yes, any more and Dumbledore would find it rather odd. Severus is a man who is quite independent and, out of nowhere, he gets another assistant? He only thinks of serving you, the dark lord."

A hush seemed to fall upon the area. Even the fire and the screams had already died down. Voldemort looked from Lucius to Severus. "You have already received one."

"Yes, my master." Severus bowed and did not raise his head until his master bid him to.

"In a way, I am a bit disappointed, but I suppose that this shows that you are returning to your old self." Voldemort smiled as the last body dropped in the fire. As he turned to one of the other deatheaters he ordered Severus to make his way back to Hogwarts.

"Severus." Lucius hurried next to his friend as he was departing. "Why don't we live it up for a while in Hogsmeade? You look like hell."

For the first time that night, Severus gave a small smile. "I'd like that."

Hedwig spent the whole day inside the library. It had already been the whole day and Draco still hadn't returned. Little did she know, that Mrs. Malfoy was interrogating the boy with questions asking about the identity of his new 'friend'.

Instead of wasting her time, Hedwig decided, that maybe she should try to learn how to speak on her own. Since Professor Snape wasn't going to help, she would learn by herself. She browsed through the books and found a good deal about pronunciation and writing. Now, if only she could try speaking out loud. Hedwig looked around shyly and saw only a few students studying for the upcoming exams. Maybe if she was very quiet…

"Haw-" Hedwig dropped the book to cover her mouth. The noise she had made sounded so awkward. When she raised her eyes up to see the others, they were all looking for what had made the noise. All confidence lost, Hedwig stopped trying to speak and worked on her writing with a quill and parchment that had been left behind by one of the students. She could read well, but she had never practiced writing before. Using her new fingers were a challenge. At first, she didn't know how to hold the feather. The quill wouldn't stay pointing down, or it'd slide out of her grip. After looking around the room, she finally saw someone holding up a quill. When she figured out the right position to hold one up, Hedwig felt quite proud of herself. By the end of the day, she was starting to understand a few rules of grammar.

As the sun had lowered, Hedwig found the library getting too crowded. Yet, out of all these people, there was no blond Slytherin in the sea of faces. Maybe be he had forgotten? Her first instincts were to wait there until Draco came for her, but then she realized that this was her inner owl. She was doing what others told her. Hedwig closed the books around her and started to put them back. The only ones she did keep was the one about speech. Perhaps she could try speaking outside in the courtyard? It would be cold, but Hedwig thought she could take on the chill.

As she had thought, the courtyard was empty. The only thing that was there was falling snow and ice sheets on top of the stone fountain. On a clear part of the fountain, where someone must have sat on before, she placed the book as she looked around her. When she breathed out, a cloud appeared! She had seen humans do this many times before, but as an owl, she had never had the ability. Hedwig smiled and breathed out another wisp of her hot breath. She had seen other humans blow what they called 'smoke rings'. Even though she was sure she wouldn't be able to form a ring, she tried to anyways. Why shouldn't she?

What else could she do now that she was human? Hedwig looked at her hands and then the snow. Snowmen! Hedwig started with a small lump on the ground then started to roll it as she had seen so many children do. Maybe she was already too old for making people out of snow, but it looked fun, so she wanted to give it a try. When she had finished the bottom one, Hedwig started to add a second ball of snow on top. To get a better view, she stood on the fountain's rock border and started to balance herself. As she stretched out her arms to keep from falling, she started to wonder if humans did this to pretend they could fly.

"If you're not careful you might fall."

That voice. Hedwig turned too quickly and stumbled. She started to fall backwards, away from the fountain, but the boy caught her before she hit the ground.

"Are you alright?"

_Master…_

The Golden Boy of the school set her down and started to think. "I didn't get the chance to ask you earlier on the first day, but have we met You seem so familiar."

Hedwig's heart jumped. When she opened her mouth to answer, not even a sound came out.

"Oh." Harry was embarrassed. "I'm sorry. I didn't know you're a mute."

_It's me! Hedwig! __Did you replace me because I didn't get your letter? I couldn't. If I can explain it to you, you'll take me back, right?_

She couldn't say a single word.

Harry rubbed his hands together. "I'd better get going. I was sending a letter using that owl you like. I'll see you around? Maybe in the summer we can write to each other. I don't know why, but I feel so comfortable around you. Ah, I'm rambling on now…can I ask you for a favor?"

Hedwig put on a smile for Harry and nodded.

"May I…" Harry scratched his face, "This is going to be odd…may I pat your head?"

_Keep smiling…_She thought as she nodded again.

Potter gently patted Hedwig's head and stroked the side of her face. Hedwig leaned into the touch and for just a moment, it was like how it used to be. When the warmth left, Hedwig straightened her face up and Harry gave an awkward laugh.

"I knew that would be odd." He said. "Well, thanks for that. I hope to see you again and don't stay outside too long. It's supposed to get colder than normal tonight."

Hedwig kept up her smile, but her heart was breaking all over again as she waved goodbye to Harry. She couldn't tell him anything. Not even a yes or a no.

She looked at the unfinished snowman and kicked it down. Few snowflakes hit her face, but they quickly melted when her tears started to mix. Roughly, she rubbed away the tears and sat down on the stone with the book in her lap. She was going to learn how to speak, no matter how ridiculous she sounded.

Hedwig looked at the first letter, but seeing them, reading them, and saying them were different things. A throat that hadn't been used it a long time was hard to start up again. She rubbed her throat and started to make noises. To her dismay, she didn't even wheeze. Hedwig tried another time. Not a sound. Maybe if she forced out more air? She had done so in the library, so she was sure she could do it again.

Once her lungs were full, Hedwig let out the air quickly but a voice that certainly wasn't hers sounded out into the air.

"Stupid…Lush…says, drinks me drunk." Severus Snape stumbled into the courtyard, leaning on anything he could hold onto for support. "I believe…I know…my limitasions…**** floor won't stop moving."

Hedwig didn't know what to do. She dropped the book and walked over to the professor.

When the man was rambling on his own, the girl tapped him on the shoulder. He looked at her for a moment before continuing on his rants.

"New love, he says…I don't…" A heartbroken sob actually broke though his lips and pity washed over Hedwig. "Lil.."

That was when it happened. He keeled over! Hedwig tried to hold the teacher up, but he outweighed by a billion tons! What did this man eat? Instead of catching him, like Harry had done to her, she was flattened down onto the snow with a fat Snape. He wasn't really fat, but he weighed like he was. Hedwig guessed that anyone would weigh a lot if they were on top of someone. Just as Hedwig was going to push him off, Severus lifted himself up by his palms and knees. He was coming to! Or, so Hedwig thought. A cloudy look came over Severus's face and he started to lean in. Hedwig automatically closed her eyes. Then she felt it. A pair of very cold lips being pressed against hers. When Severus pulled away, his mouth was slightly ajar and his eyes looked sad.

Hedwig snapped out of whatever had kept her motionless and made a fist. This had gone on long enough! Her kindled rage stopped quickly, when Severus's hand touched the top of her head then her face. The gesture was so much like…

A strong fist hit Severus's face. The fist belonged to Hedwig and the man was knocked out instantly. Now able to kick him away, Hedwig freed herself and started to make her way back into the castle.

_That kiss was for Knight!_ She thought angrily.

A few moments later, Hedwig came back onto the scene and gave the professor a kick to the stomach as punishment for drinking too much. She could practically smell the rum on his breath. Well, not just that, she could taste it! After rolling her eyes, she slowly started to drag him inside. There'd be hell to pay when he woke up.

"Lily…" Severus mumbled.

Hedwig was in the living room of Severus' chambers. As soon as the man had come near the doors of his room, the spells guarding it lifted, allowing her and the teacher to enter. When Hedwig laid the man down, she found, to her surprise, that he'd been crying.

Severus turned over on his side and readjusted the blanket. Blanket? He sat up. How did he get into his own quarters? And why did his stomach hurt? Why did his face hurt? Slowly, Severus sat up and put a hand to the left side of his face. A dull pain hit his head and he sunk back down. Hangover.

_That's right…Lucius and I…drinking games…_He groaned. _The only reason why he had me drink was to get information about the girl._

"He better not tell her anything." Severus sat up again. "She already has enough problems. Stupid Perliman…what was he bloody thinking?"

Soft breathing made Severus stop his movements. "Hedwin?"

Apparently, the alcohol, or whatever Lucius slipped into his drink last night was fuzzying up his mind.

The girl was slumping over the coffee table as she sat sleeping on the floor. He looked at her face and saw that her face was completely white, except for blue lips. Severus jolted up. "You idiot!"

Snape lifted up the girl and put her on the couch he'd been occupying. After he draped the blanket over her, he'd started a fire. How could she have been so careless? It's as if she doesn't think about her situation. Snape felt her face and made a fist. "You're not an owl anymore! You can't withstand the cold like you used to."

The sun still hadn't come up, but the light should break the darkness soon. He still had time to Severus caught the scent of something fowl. "Ugh…alcohol…" Why did he drink so much? The memories of last nights raid came back. More painful memories to add. Severus walked into his bedchambers and closed the double doors behind him. Severus turned to the old record player and started up an album. Muggles may be near incompetent, but they had music that relaxed any broken spirit. Severus's choice to play was Unforgettable by Nat King Cole. He remembered listening to it for the first time with Lily. Severus started to strip the clothes that smelled of fire and burnt flesh. He reeked. A point to the bath started the warm water as he stepped in.

He smiled again as the chorus struck his ears. It was to this very song Severus learned to dance. Severus laughed at the vision he painted in his mind. A scrawny, sickly, pale kid struggling to keep up with a beautiful and kind-hearted girl in the room of requirement. Her laughter ringing in the air as he stumbled over his feet made him only stumble even more. She was, afterall, his first love. Though he kept this to himself, Severus was content with these small moments with just himself and the girl. There was no love for him in a romantic sense. Lily Evans had already given her heart to someone (Not verbally, but she had already showed signs of love). Even so, Severus cared for her greatly. Though his heart beat so frantically when he was near her, he'd never voice his true feelings. It would only cause more problems for her.

That day, Lily received at least a few bruises on her feet from being stepped on, and Severus, in return, a few bruises on his arms from bumping into walls. They were in pain for the rest of the evening, but happy.

Severus heard the record come to a stop and replay. He stopped his reminiscing and began to scrub the smell of burnt wood off of his body. Hopefully, the clean smell would put the memory behind him, if only for a small time.

Once everything was in order, his new robes for today were put on, his usually greasy hair was now washed, his soul lifted, Severus had to figure out what to do with the girl. He exited his bedroom and sighed. He wasn't in the mood to join a crowd of faculty in the dining hall. Perhaps just something light. What would the girl want? Severus called one of the house elves and ordered him to bring something simple for breakfast.

Now that the sun was up, Severus took out a few of his old clothes. He didn't have anything for girls, so this would have to do for now. As much as it pained him to admit it, if the girl hadn't taken him home, he probably would have froze to death. It was only fair that he try to return the favor. Severus headed towards the small kitchen that he had installed himself on days he locked himself inside, but as he made his way, he tripped over something on the floor. He had to bite his tongue to stop the curse word from rising from his throat. Snape looked down at the offensive object. A book?

Snape frowned. All his books from his shelf were in order, so this one wasn't one of his. He flipped the book onto its back and read the title aloud. "Pronunciation Education." The nauseating rhyme actually flipped the professor's stomach. "There's no possible way anyone could learn from this nonsense." He set it down on the table when he heard a small cough from the girl. That explained it. She borrowed the book from the library. Severus sighed. She really wanted to learn how to speak.

"Your breakfast, sir?" A house elf appeared in the room with a tray having two servings of everything. Severus gestured to a table near the kitchen and gave the elf leave.

Severus sat down on a chair and started to take the food off the tray and onto the table.

What exactly happened last night? Severus knew that the girl had helped him, but he couldn't shake the foreboding feeling that something happened last night that shouldn't have. Severus straightened up when he started to remember. Something…Severus picked up two cups of porcelain and frowned. What happened? Severus traced his fingers over his lips and winced. A bruise?

Then it hit him. The vision of him and the girl in the snow played, paused, rewound, played and paused…the image in his mind zoomed in when the two made contact…or rather, their lips.

"…****ing *****ity ****!" Severus dropped the china, and before the girl could wake up from the noise, sprinted out the door without his outer robe.

In class, Draco was a wreck. He had spent the majority of yesterday with his mother and this morning with inquiring Pansy, as to where his friend was. Regretfully, he didn't know! Draco hit his head on the desk while waiting for Professor Snape to enter the room in Potions Class. The young Slytherin had thought about asking his godfather concerning the whereabouts of his friend, but the last thing that the two had talked about prevented Draco from mustering up the ability to ask anything. Aside from his cowardice, Draco also couldn't find him yesterday.

The class went on talking cheerfully. The main question of the room was…would Professor Snape be gone another day so they could have another homework free night. Hope was dashed against the wall and shattered when a slightly red, thinner looking Snape walked in. The man was practically hyperventilating. None of the students had ever seen the professor this…could it be…embarrassed?

Snape leaned on his desk with his hand and tried to catch his breath. He seemed to be in very deep thought and he kept mumbling to himself. The students nearer to him heard a few things said as the room quieted.

"How can I look at her now?" Severus raked his hair with his other hand. "How could I have been so-Get to work! I'm certain that I assigned several in-class writing assignments. They will be due at the end of the period. Any talking, and snickering, if anything besides the scratching of a quill on parchment is heard, then I will end everyone in the class with a failing grade."

The class started to fumble through their school supplies and write. Silence dominated the room so much that even breathing was stopped at several minutes at a time. No one dared to make a noise. They were all too shocked and scared of Snape's new attitude. They had never seen him in such a foul mood.

There was one poor fool who decided to look at the angry teacher in the eye. Snape made eye contact immediately and the student was given extra work and even detention for the whole week for defiance with Filch. Poor boy. Several of his classmates that looked at him with pity were given the same treatment.

"Professor Snape," Albus Dumbledore had appeared at the door with his head peaking in, "a word?"

The dark man nodded and walked to the entrance of the room.

"You look thinner without your outer robe. Oh, Where's your assistant?" The headmaster asked. "Another sleepless night?"

"Albus!"

Several quills dropped and Snape heard an inkbottle crash to the ground.

"Severus?"

Snape realized that the two had risen to different ideas of a sleepless night. Dumbledore had put into his mind the reason for Severus's lack of an assistant was because she was simply tired. Severus had thought the old wizard had a less innocent explanation for why the girl wasn't there.

"Ah…forgive me…Headmaster, I thought…" Snape shut the door behind him. "I thought you were implying…is there something you require?"

"I was just worried. You didn't report last night and I was only seeing if you were well. You may report your findings when you are ready." Albus smiled. "It seems that my paranoia has gotten the best of my good judgment and you are doing fine. It's quite a relief."

"Well, paranoia is natural during these dark times." Severus looked back to the door and started to open it. "If you would excuse me, Headmaster."

"Oh, and Severus?"

Snape paused with the door partly open. "Yes, sir?"

"The faculty would appreciate it greatly if you didn't publicly display your affection of love in the courtyard." Dumbledore said curtly. "Quite a show, but nevertheless, inappropriate "

Bottles and bottles of ink were heard as they fell to the ground. Severus turned red with embarrassment. With complete obliviousness of what he did, the old man walked away.

----------------

Author's Note: Please review. It'll help me write faster, and get more ideas. I'm currently squeezing my brain for ideas, but I'm not feeling motivated enough. Thank you for reading my stories and chapters. Oh! The Alert and Favorite story notices are oh so nice, I feel I hardly deserve them and I thank you, but I beg of you to review. More reviews mean more people will be tempted to read. Thank you oh so much!


	7. A Few Things In Common

Author: Of Crimson Moonlight

Author's Note: Up till now, I've been trying to update every week, but as my Fall term is starting soon, I might start falling behind. I thank you all who have put this story on their alerts, favorites or reviewed. They all make my heart beat with happiness. You know who you are :). Please tell me what you think in reviews. It means so much to me.

Disclaimer: The world and imaginations of Harry Potter, including its characters are the property of J.K. Rowling.

A Few Things In Common

Hedwig looked at the breakfast. It was getting cold and Snape was nowhere to be found in the room. Good!

There was some comfort that he wouldn't remember what happened last night because of his drunk state, but it was a bit disheartening as well. That was her first kiss and it was meaningless. Hedwig pulled out the picture to her dream human, Knight. She laid it on the coffee table so that it wouldn't get crinkled.

Hedwig started to eat a few things on the tray full of food, and cleaned up two shattered glasses that were on the ground. Did she do that in her sleep? Hedwig shook her head. This man needed help. Getting drunk at night, and staying out late. It was no way to sped a lifetime. He was living a double life for crying outloud! Someone needed to watch over him.

She found a nearby broom and started to sweep the glass, but stopped when a thought crossed her mind. Is that what that old owl wanted? Someone to take care of him and his poor lifestyle? Hedwig rolled her eyes. Snape could hire a maid.

Maybe the man got drunk at night because he didn't have anything to live for.

She looked around and saw a tray of food that had been untouched by no one but herself. He didn't eat breakfast then. Maybe she could bring him something? It's not that she was worried about the man. It's just that maybe…Hedwig tried to find an excuse. Well, he wasn't really capable of taking care of himself anyways. Last night was a bit of an eye opener for Hedwig. Severus was in pain.

So…what should she do? Hedwig sighed.

When everything was all accounted for in the room, she picked up her book that she received from the library along with a bread roll, and exited.

----

No student in the Potions Classroom was concentrating on the in-class assignment. They're minds were all preoccupied with the old headmaster's last words: _The faculty would appreciate it greatly if you didn't publicly display your affection of love in the courtyard. Quite a show, but nevertheless, uninappropriate._

The bat of the dungeon had a partner?

Snape couldn't concentrate on anything this morning. After scrawling a few scratch marks to a paper, he shot up from his desk. His students eyed him nervously as they swallowed hard. Was he going to punish them again?

The professor remembered where he was and cooled down a bit. "Class dismissed."

Every student in the room knew something was bothering the man when he said this. The class should have continued on for at least another twenty minutes.

"The in class assignment will be due tomorrow from the very moment you walk into the classroom. Any late papers will receive nothing for a grade."

The young wizards and witches needed no second bidding. Everyone rushed out and Severus sat down to think. He had to explain so much to so many. His head started to ache as well as his neck. Whose fault was this?

Snape pinched the bridge of his nose in annoyance. Maybe he should write a letter to Dumbledore explaining his dilemma? The Potions Master opened a drawer and pulled out some parchment. When he was about to let his thoughts fall onto paper, a familiar crest caught his eye. A waxed seal of the Malfoy Family had locked an envelope that was addressed to him lay on the ground. It was from Malfoy. The boy had probably put in on his desk earlier in a hurry.

_Dear Professor,_

_Help me. Mother is insane! She and my father have joined forces to figure out my friend's identity. Help. They are practically smothering me. Well, mother is anyways. You must help me escape! If that is beyond your power, then I beg of you, take care of __**her**__ while I'm gone? If you do not, I'll jump off the astrology tower and plummet to my death. You know I will!_

_Your Ever-Loving Godson,_

_Draco._

"Absolutely not!" Severus had considered hunting down Narcissa, but her will power in protecting her son was far greater than his own desperation to rid himself of the girl. He had enough problems already and he didn't want anything more to add to his responsibilities. He carried the weight of the world already on his shoulders. Anything else and he would surely shatter. "That owl is the cause of all my problems. She must be thrown out and dealt with. That nuisance must be stopped! She's become a hindrance to my life!"

By now, Severus was walking out of the room, but just as he exited, he realized that he had made a very big mistake.

There, leaning on the wall near the doorway was a very, very, quiet Hedwig. Even her eyes seemed to have lost their spark. She was acting too silent. Even for a mute.

"Hedwin." Severus almost choked from shock. What was said was said. The words could never return from where they came from, leaving the man with a permanent mark in the air.

The girl didn't look at him at all.

_I brought you breakfast too!_ Hedwig threw the hardened bread roll at the professor and ran the opposite way.

----

It had been exactly two hours and twenty-three minutes since Severus had last seen Hedwig. Within this time, he had been able to cause terror in the halls, shorten breaks between classes, and caused several first years to soil their pants unintentionally. He was terrifying today!

As soon as class was over Severus briskly walked out of the room scaring the same group of students he had just tortured with sneers, snarls and snares the last hour. Each student that the Potions Master passed prayed for death if the man should so much as glance their way. To their surprise and relief, the professor seemed to have a more urgent engagement. He didn't even seem to be paying attention to anyone around him. Several students even got away with commenting about a red mark on his forehead. In fact, that was the same mark that Severus had received from the hardened bread (it might as well have been a rock). The thing was a constant reminder that he had hurt her feelings.

Hedwin…the very name meant _holy peace_. Ever since he met her, he hadn't had a moment of peace or quiet. She couldn't even talk! He'd been bitten twice, mocked by his superiors, and now he had a bruise from a bread roll! What was next? A punch to the face?

He had to find her.

Snape stopped. Wait. Why should he care now for what happened to him? He relaxed for a moment. Surely he'd get peace now. Didn't he just get what he wanted? The girl was gone, and Snape doubted that the girl would willingly come back to his quarters. This meant he was free. Snape's foul mood was fading away as he realized that his previous problem was gone. He gave a feral grin and started to walk normally, instead of his frantic strut through the hallway. This was a good thing.

"Severus!"

The man turned around and was face to face with a concerned looking Madame Pomfrey.

"I need to ask you for a favor."

Snape held his breath to hide his annoyance or a slip of the tongue. "How may I assist?"

"I know I should probably ask the DADA, but it's very curious. Albus hasn't received or heard word from him. And, the only person who I know that is here and sufficient for such a task is you." Madam Pomfrey paused to make sure the man was listening. She had also noticed that he had stopped breathing. "Several students are coming into my ward with strange black coloring on their hands. Immediately afterwards, they break out in…purple hives! I have a remedy I think, although the hives don't seem harmful, I'd like to know for sure. They told me that they were at the lake and something had touched them when they were on the boats. Something might be wrong, and I'm pleading with you to check it out. It doesn't have to be now, but if you get the time to…"

Severus nodded, "I will see what I can do."

The woman thanked him and scurried off. After the conversation, Snape had seemed to regain all his old mannerisms. Everything was going to be fine.

Now that his head was cleared, he had to see a certain Golden Boy about missing detention. He had heard from a few Slytherins that the boy had intentionally snuck out to Hogsmeade. This called for double detention with Filch. One for tomorrow, and another during the first quidditch match against his own house. Without their seeker, the team was lost. Today was looking up.

----

"No, mother. It's really not like that." Draco said for at least the eighty-seventh time. "I was just helping her out. She's a friend."

The Lady Malfoy sighed as she looked at her reflection from a far off mirror as she sipped a cup of hot jasmine tea. Her son and she were having a small break from a chat (to Draco it was more of an inquisition). It was already after the main class of DADA, and the woman insisted on having a moment with her son before he continued on to lunch. "Draco, there are people out there who would want nothing more than to use you."

"She's a mute! Mother, how could she possibly be a threat?"

"Don't use that tone of voice with _me_, Draco."

The boy swallowed and nodded. "Yes, mother."

"Actually, something _has_ been bothering me." Narcissa asked. "Why are you pushing the girl to your godfather?"

Draco almost dropped his cup. "Mother?"

"Draco?"

The two smiled at each other politely and sipped their tea.

"They're alike." Draco said as he looked down into the brew.

"What?"

"They were both abandoned, so why can't they…"

The woman gave a look of pity.

"He deserves to be happy too, right? Don't they both? Their lives were so unfair."

"Well," Narcissa Malfoy looked at her son. What a fine son she had. "I guess they must get along swimmingly. I saw their little rendezvous in the courtyard when I visited last night."

"R-rendezvous?"

----

When Severus entered into his quarters, it was dark and empty. Very empty.

"As it should be." He said to himself. "Broom…broom, where's the broom?"

The stick with bristles was resting against the small table. He still had to clean up the glass he broke this morning. Then there was the uneaten breakfast and the dishes. Severus supposed he could have asked the house elves, but decided to let them rest. It was already late.

As he reached for the broom, his eyes wandered to the area where the broken glass was. Odd. It was gone. In fact, he looked around the room and inspected it. Everything was tidied up. It was the exact opposite from this morning. Even his bedchambers were cleaned. The bed was made, and the puddles on the floor from this morning had been wiped away instead of left to dry on their own.

"She did all this?" Severus gave an irritated sigh. He wasn't upset at the girl, but at himself. He dropped the broom and began to head to the doors. Just as he had undone the protective wards, the door swung open, and a fist belonging to a young Malfoy came flying to Severus with the speed of a hippogriff and knocked him on the side of the face.

----

It was getting late, and Hedwig didn't know where to go. She couldn't get into the Slytherin quarters even if she knew the password, the library sounded scary at night because of Filch, and that cat really scared her. Even though she was a human, the idea of that Mrs. Norris coming near her with claws and teeth bared…she shivered slightly.

Hedwig was sitting on a poor excuse of a fence that surrounded a pumpkin patch. Her feet were resting on a giant pumpkin as her fingers tugged her cloak closer to herself. Why were they called 'pumpkins' anyway? Hedwig didn't understand at all.

"Are yeh back for more? You rotten lil'-" A rough and angry voice boomed as the door to a small hut opened. Light broke out into the darkness that surrounded Hedwig allowing a tall, large billowing man to spot her in an instant. "Oh? Who be you?"

Hedwig stood up, but her posture as she sat left her with a less than graceful landing. She fell backwards onto the ground with her legs following her.

"Oh dear. Lemme 'elp. Terribly sorry for givin' yeh a fright. Ah've been 'aving some problems with a few troublemakers from the school. They've been 'olding a grudge ever since Ah gave 'em a poor grade. Actually, Ah'm also waitin' for a few of some Griffindors. Need a bit o' 'elp with something secret…" The man looked at the girl. "I shouldn't 'ave told yeh that."

It was Hagrid! Hedwig felt him grab her gently by the arm and set her on her feet.

"'ow's that? Yeh know, a lil' girl like yerself shouldn't be out wandrin' out o' the castle walls."

Hedwig nodded and brushed her clothes with a smile.

"Merlin's beard!" Hagrid shouted. "'ave yeh been cryin'?"

The once-owl brushed her eyes and shook her head.

"Now don't yeh worry. Ah've been in these moods meself lately, and they're mighty painful when your by your lonesome. Why don't yeh have a nice cup o' tea? I promise yeh won't be disappointed."

The giant wouldn't take a shake of the head for an answer and pushed Hedwig into his hut. A pot had already begun to sing on the fireplace and Hagrid took it off before the thing could screech a painful sonnet.

"Yeh don't talk much, do yeh?"

At this, Hedwig touched her throat and made an 'x' with her arms.

"Ah, a mute, eh? That's nice."

Hedwig shot a confused look.

"It means that yeh can be more considerate. People who can talk learn to love their own voice, an' they forget 'ow to listen." Hagrid pulled out two mugs and started to poor the tea. His hands were too large for a small tea cup and apparently, he had to settle for a mug.

With a polite nod of the head, Hedwig thanked the giant before blowing on the hot liquid. When she caught Hagrid's attention, she pointed to him and brushed the bottom of her eye with her finger.

"Why've I been cryin'?"

She nodded.

"Well, it's silly really." Hagrid began. "Yeh see, there was this gift I gave someone, but…they somehow lost it. It was 'is first birthday present, and 'e lost it." The large man began to bawl. "It was a special gift too. 'e probably mistreated her and she took off! She might be so alone right now! No, I can't blame 'im. Maybe she got lost! Ah've been lookin' 'round, and no one's seen her. I hope she didn't' get caught by you-know-who! What if she's cold an' 'ungry? Oh, Hedwig!"

Hagrid's crying had stopped for the girl had suddenly given him an embrace. She didn't even come close to wrapping her arms completely around him, but she tried and held him tight. The half giant had already stopped crying and had started to sniffle.

"Yeh're a kind one, yeh know?" Hagrid wiped his face and patted the girl's head. Then he stopped. "Do I…do I know yeh?"

Glass shattered and broke the special moment. A rock had been thrown through the window shattering the nerves of the two inside the hut.

"They're back! Stay 'ere." The giant grabbed his umbrella and swung it over his head. He kicked open the door and charged outside towards two students out passed curfew. Hedwig was about to follow, but someone bumped into her. It was a third student! The first two were distracting Hagrid away from his hut!

Immediately, Hedwig launched herself at the robber and started to do everything possible to ward off the intruder. The two ended up falling out of the house on to lower ground, and began wrestling on the ground. Though Hedwig was much bigger now that she was human, the boy was still taller. He knocked her on the ground and started to hit her. Instinct took over and as soon as his hand slapped her face, she bit. In fact, she bit down so hard a familiar metallic taste came to her mouth. The taste of blood. The sound of something cracking reached the fighters' ears, and the boy screamed. She had broken his fingers!

"Expelliarmus!"

The boy was knocked back against Hagrid's stonewalls and he blacked out.

Hedwig sat up and looked at the very last person she would have expected to rescue her.

"Miss Granger."

That voice. Hedwig knew it, and of course, Hermione knew it as well. The girl lowered her wand and turned around to face a very odious looking Professor Snape. Behind him, was a very sorry looking Hagrid. The giant was also holding the other two boys, both unconscious as well as the third. He was trying to apologize to Hermione, but the girl had already given a look that said none was needed.

"Hagrid," Snape addressed the giant. "Take these boys to the medical ward, as for you, Miss Granger, 20 points from Griffindor. I shall talk to your Head of House for your punishment of being up past curfew. I leave her to you as well, Hagrid."

The professor watched as the smartest girl in Hogwarts frowned and walked to Hagrid in a disappointed manner. He didn't care right now, and he wasn't in the mood to feel happy at someone else's misfortune.

Severus picked Hedwig up by the arm roughly and started to drag her back to the castle. Despite Hagrid's protests and shocked looks from Hermione, he continued to treat her so. He even picked up the pace.

"Never seen 'im so worried."

"_That's_ worried?" Hermione asked in disbelief.

The wards went down and Severus pushed the doors to enter his rooms.

"Sit down." Severus ordered as soon as he let Hedwig go. When both hands were free, he went to get a bowl. "Aguamenti." He said softly and from his wand, water started to draw from it into a gray ceramic bowl. He picked up a rag that had been folded on a chair, and with this and the bowl, he sat down on the couch, but Hedwig had yet to join him.

The words she had heard him say were still in her mind. If she was a bother to him, then she wouldn't trouble him anymore. She pointed to the door and walked towards it.

"You can't leave, where are you going to go?" Severus wringed the rag in his hand and motioned her to sit down without any concern. "Wandering around the halls, sleeping Merlin who knows where, people will start asking questions."

The girl drew an invisible lightning bolt on her forehead.

"Ah," Severus scoffed. "You want to stay with Potter."

She nodded.

"I presume you want Draco or perhaps myself to tell him that you are his lost owl."

He knew about that? Hedwig nodded again.

"Not a very thought out plan. The Golden Boy and anyone intertwined with the Slytherin House don't get along. Your master would first drop dead before believing a snake. Tell him yourself." He smirked.

Hedwig grumbled in her mind and sat down.

"Keep this against your face and wipe off the blood." He tossed the wet rag to Hedwig and got up to the kitchen. "Have you eaten?"

Why was he being so agreeable? She indicated a 'no' with a simple gesture.

Severus took off his outer robe and flung it to a chair around the dining table.

He was cooking! He was standing around a pot of some kind of stew. Hedwig drew closer and sat at the table. This was a side to the Potions Master that no one had seen before. He looked so…Hedwig scratched her head. For lack of a better word, he looked normal. He started to cut something up and dumped it into the boiling water. With a very small motion the table started to set itself. Bowls and eating utensils started to levitate.

"I suppose I must apologize." Severus stated. "For last night and this morning."

_What am I saying? _Severus frowned even more. He didn't look at the girl, but kept his eyes onto the bubbles that were rising to the top of the water.

"The fault is mine." He said slowly.

He was admitting it? Hedwig's curiosity got a hold of her and she walked over to the counter of the kitchen. What was he cooking?

"Hare stew." He answered as if the girl had asked her question aloud.

The pot lifted as he stepped back and seated himself at the table. The girl followed and watched with little interest as Severus served the meal. She tried to understand what he was thinking.

"Look," he settled the bowl before Hedwig and started to serve himself. "You can't keep wandering around the castle. No one knows who you are, and look at you. You just got bullied by a Hufflepuff. A _Hufflepuff_! Not even a Griffindor, but a…"

Severus heard the words he was saying. His voice was beginning to rise in volume. This is what always happened. He tried to talk calmly at first, but whenever something irritated him, he could feel his upbringing taking over. The constant habits of his parents' arguing and shouting started to show through their son.

Seeing a distressed look on the man's face, Hedwig gently laid her hand on his for a moment, and then she pulled back her hand. Severus stopped his inner panic and looked at the girl. She pushed her bowl towards him and gave a smile, asking for more. She had been hungrier than he thought.

Just like that, at that simple contact, his inner turmoil had been calmed.

Did she not know how ridiculous she looked? Severus cringed as the blood on her face smeared against the rag that she dabbed against her lip. He grabbed the cloth and said in a stern voice, "You're doing it…"

"…_wrong." Lily took her handkerchief from Severus. She sat beside him, and started to dab the wound just below his lip. "I told you before. If you sense that you can't win, then it's alright to run away."_

_Severus winced, but the girl hissed to make him stop. _

"_I," Severus began, "I'm sick of running away. I'm sick of doing nothing and just curling into a ball, hoping for danger to pass. I hate them."_

_Lily shook her head. "Oh, Severus…hatred only creates more-"_

"_Sometimes hatred is just."_

_The girl paused to think. "I…"_

"_What about murders? Those who desire to hurt others? Is it not right to hate them?"_

"_Pity…perhaps."_

"_What if someone you loved was hurt. Would you hate the cause of their pain?"_

_For this, she had no answer. "Is it..."_

"Better?"

Hedwig nodded.

Severus paused to see the position he was in. His role in that memory had been reversed. Instead of being the wounded, he was in Lily's position, leaving her to be the victim of the bullies. She was, in a way, just like himself. He had been eager to please Lily, and this girl was eager to please Harry. He recalled the book she had wanted to study so diligently. Another thing about her was that she was an outcast. That much was plain.

He lowered his hand with the wet rag and looked at the girl that was just like him. It was like looking in a mirror. Well, except she was a girl.

She pushed her bowl again towards Severus with a shy look.

Seeing the look on her face, he had to force down a smile. She was so like his younger self. Shy and timid, unsure and cautious.

"Hedwin…" Severus began.

She was already tired of the name, but she wasn't willing to interrupt him. He looked like he was going to say something important.

"I'll do it with you." His brow lowered slightly as he brought himself to his feet. Until now, he had been on his knees infront of the girl treating her wounds. "If you still want to, I'll teach you how to speak. And, write."

The girl's mouth opened in surprise and without a moment's hesitation, she launched herself at the professor and wrapped her arms around his neck. It was endearing and violent and the same time.

Severus let out a yelp before acting as the cushion that broke the girl's fall. "Oh, for pity's sake!"

He raised himself on the back of his palms with the girl still voluntarily holding him. Severus hesitantly patted her head with a sigh, and couldn't help but wonder how he would live up to his decision.

----

Review please!


	8. A OneMan Audience

Author: Of Crimson Moonlight

Author's note: Thank you to all who have added this story to your alerts, favorites and/or reviewed. I can't express my gratitude and I can't anticipate for other ones. Thank you so much!

Disclaimer: All characters from Harry Potter belong to the creative mind of J.K. Rowling.

A One-Man Audience

"Hurry, or you'll make me late." Severus ordered from the outside of his quarters.

Hedwig rubbed her eyes as she fitted into her usual clothes in the small bathroom. As she did before, the girl started to fold the man's younger fitting clothes neatly before laying them on a counter in the bathroom.

The girl came out from the room and pointed to the couch.

"No." Severus tapped his foot impatiently. "You can't stay here. If you do you might…I don't know, burn down my room. Or…something."

Severus flipped hair out of his face before grabbing the girl's arm to drag her out of the room. They were headed to his classroom. Apparently, Snape was an early bird ready to catch the worms and devour them alive. By worms, Hedwig assumed they were his tortured students. The man was dedicated to his work. Maybe even a bit too much.

As Snape kept the girl at pace with his own steps, he realized that her once pure white outfit had started to gather dirt on the bottom. Maybe…Severus shook an idea away as he started to hurry.

In the morning, around 5 hours after midnight, he preferred to start the day by rechecking the schedule for the classes. He had prepared earlier, but since yesterday's shift in teaching (the in class assignment), it meant he'd have more work to do. If he didn't find a suitable substitution for the work he'd added to himself, he might be buried all night in work. He could have done this last night, but he had been preoccupied in making something else for the girl.

He stopped. "Where's your scarf?"

Hedwig touched her neck. She had left the thing back in his quarters.

"Now we have to go back and get it." He said angrily.

When he started to turn around, she stopped him and shook her head.

"Of course you need it." Truth be told, after she had nearly frozen to death, he was astounded that the girl hadn't caught a cold. After taking her as a pupil, he couldn't help but feel at least a bit responsible for her well-being. "You might catch a cold."

The girl looked at his neck.

"I never get sick." He snapped.

She didn't believe him one bit.

"Well…if you don't really need it."

Hedwig nodded and started in the direction of their previous destination.

When the two had reached the classroom, the professor walked to his desk to pull out some papers from the drawer.

"I've taken the liberty of making you simple writing exercises." Severus walked Hedwig to a table and as she sat down, started to explain the worksheet. "As you can see, there are, in total, 26 letters in the English language. You have your vowels, and then your consonants. Do you follow?"

She nodded.

Severus called to himself a quill and ink. He laid the quill near Hedwig's hand. Easiness took hold of him when he saw that she had already taught herself how to hold the quill, and he continued.

"We will start with the vowels." He leaned over to flip through the pages, "They are on the left of the page, and on the right there are dots. Connect them to form the vowel. It's very standard and basic. I expect you to finish all of these before the day is through. After you have connected them, I want you to write them on your own on the blank spot below. Am I clear?"

Hedwig nodded again with determination. As Severus walked back to his desk, he kept watching her from the corner of his eye approving her dedication. A few hours later...

_Dedication? What dedication! She fell asleep!_ Severus thought to himself moments after the first class started. He had a mind to slap her, or throw something to make her wake, but then he realized that he _had_ woken her up at around four a.m.

_Let her sleep then._ Severus made his way around the room and caught the sight of a very studious Malfoy. The young heir had walked into the classroom looking glum, but when he saw the girl sitting and scratching away on a piece of parchment, he brightened up and the trademark smirk rose to his face. He gave a triumphant look to his professor. The cold look in Severus's eyes was ignored as the platinum blond took his seat.

Peace was the last thing near Snape. To the student's Dumbledore's words were deeply reflected on. The main question was whether the sleeping girl was the same one mentioned the day before.

The small pieces of gossip were stopped quickly, when an explosion erupted from 's cauldron. The poor boy never even had a chance with his concoction. The group was studying dreaming draughts. Apparently, the griffindor put too much deadly night shade in his mix.

"What are you trying to do, boy?" Snape shouted. "You're making a simple dream potion, not a death blend. Too much atropine!"

Slytherins won again today. Malfoy and his little troupe laughed to themselves as they continued on with their own. The same thing had continued with other classes. A potion exploded, Snape shouted rebuke and the class ended.

When the room was empty, Severus nudged the girl. She had woken up several other times to continue her work, and she had managed to do well for herself…until she fell asleep again.

"Take a break." He told her. A gesturing had was telling her to get out in a polite(but not really) way. "Get something to eat, and when you're ready, come back. After we meet, you finish your work and we'll go to our-" He paused. "_my_ quarters."

Hedwig nodded and stretched before she left the room. Severus looked at the empty seat and then to the door. For some reason he felt the room go colder. Angry at himself for thinking of such foolish things, he berated himself shortly and then went to correct the assignments.

----

"This is just _perfect_!" Draco shouted as he shoveled something unknown into sacks. Right now, he was in the lower dungeons serving his detention with not Filch, the filthy squib, but the filthy Harry Potter. "How could this have happened?"

Harry grunted as he lifted up his shovel. "Don't ask me." He was bitter because instead of going to help Hermione get supplies for Hagrid, he was stuck in a hole with Malfoy. He groaned.

The light that was being used by the two of them started to be drawn away from Harry's vision. When he turned around, he saw the young Malfoy using the torch to read!

"Hey!" The Golden Boy snatched the light, but by doing so, Draco's hold on the book started to slip and the object went tumbling from his hands.

"Watch it! You mugglelover!" Draco hissed.

Harry started to pat his person as if he had dropped something. He swore. Perhaps it was under the book?

Draco panicked when the other boy started to bend over. "Don't touch that!"

The two boys froze.

"Till…the End…" Harry's eyes widened as he read the title.

The blond started to redden with anger, but it was stilled when he saw a piece of paper on the ground. It was a movie ticket stub. "…of Summers?"

"You too?" They yelled at the same time.

----

Hedwig supposed she should be getting food, but she had stranded to Hagrid's hut. She wanted to thank the friendly giant for the other day. She was knocking on his door, but it as it happened, the half-giant was out.

"He's not in."

The once owl turned around to see her hero from the night before. Or…was it heroine? Hermione Granger, in cold weather attire.

"In fact, he' just left."

The two were silent. Just as Hedwig had thanked the girl and was about to leave, Hermione stopped her. "Hey, should you be alone? I mean, you're rather an easy target. I'm on my way to Hogsmeade to pick up something for Hagrid. Do you want to come?" The intelligent girl saw this as a perfect opportunity to learn something about the girl who she was sure she'd seen at Grimmauld Place.

Hedwig looked back to the castle but then realized she had nothing better to do. With a small smile, she accepted the girl's offer and before long the two headed off towards Hog's Head.

"So," Hermione began her inquisition, "I think I've seen you somewhere before. Although, I could be wrong."

Hedwig wasn't really paying attention. Her nose was…leaking. Why was it leaking?

"Oh, here." Hermione took out a tissue. "You should always be prepared. Especially in weather like this. It's odd really. It's not even winter. It's still fall and we're already getting snow. I can't wait for Halloween though. Just the thought is very exciting."

As the girl talked, Hermione saw a neat clean and clear row of icicles hanging from a low tree branch. Quickly, she broke off two and handed one to Hedwig. "I know they can be bad for your teeth, but, I just love these."

The smart girl started to lick the ice. Hedwig was confused. If it was bad for your teeth, why do it?

Hermione saw the girl's confusion. "They're bad if you bite it. They're wonderful for keeping your lips moist though. Here's Hogsemeade…now where's the shop I need?"

Hedwig was playing with the hot air that was coming out of her mouth when she exhaled. She didn't hear Hermione's when the girl started to drag her off to a shop. Hedwig realized that she tended to get dragged alot now that she was human.

"In a few days from now, I'm going to go fishing. Well, not exactly fishing. More of a hunt for a giant squid in the lake. Hagrid has a bizarre attraction for creatures that are…well, bizarre. It used to be a baby, but it's started causing trouble with several students. Harry was supposed to come with me today, but he got in trouble with Professor Snape. Honestly, that man can be such a-oh."

The girl stopped her words and looked at Hedwig. The pale girl wondered why Hermione had stopped talking. Ah, she had been talking about Severus. Hedwig patted Hermione's shoulder to let the girl know it wasn't a big deal.

"Well," Hermione cleared her throat and entered the shop she had been eyeing with Hedwig latched onto her arm. "I'm here to pick up something for Hagrid."

An old looking man reading the Daily Prophet looked up from his paper and sighed. Without a word, the man nodded his head towards a long package that leaned against the wall. Hermione let go of Hedwig to observe the package. Once she was satisfied, the girl nodded with approval and the two girls left the shop. The pair started to walk through the streets and look into the windows. "I wonder…" Hermione said quietly, "you know, you're really not all that bad."

Hedwig listened on.

"I thought you were someone I saw before. I guess I was wrong. You seem to be very innocent actually. You don't get out much do you?"

Hedwig shook her head.

"Oh, right." Hermione remembered that the girl couldn't talk. "You know, last night, if I wasn't there you could have been in serious trouble. I mean, Hagrid was nearby but you weren't able to make a sound." She stopped walking. "I've got it!"

Hermione sighed. "I was supposed to use this to bate the squid, but I suppose I could get another one." Gingerly, she reached into her pocket and took out a box. "This will help you."

The girl in white was invited to take the box and open it. Inside was a flute! And on the top of the flute was a wonderful carving of a small snowy owl!

"Well? Go on then." Hermione took the empty box from the girl and put it back into her pocket. "Give a try."

Hedwig looked at the other girl with uncertainty and placed her lips on the edge of the flute where the snowy owl was perched near.

"Just breath out." Hermione instructed. "Think of this as a 'thank you' for coming with me to Hogsmeade."

She did so. The noise that came out from the flute made Hedwig stop and pull back from shock. She just…she just hooted! She tried again a second time, but with more fervor. She made another noise and it sounded how she should have sounded as an owl.

Excitement took hold of her and she started to keep her steady patterns of air going through the pipe. Hermione was delighted to see that her new friend was enjoying the present. This small enjoyment carried on for a while until Hedwig sneezed.

Hermione became alarmed. "You're not getting sick are you?"

This was such a surprise. Hedwig had never been _sick_ before. She knew Harry got sick, but it didn't look terrible. That's right. Severus had said that he never got sick. But what exactly _was_ sick? She had heard that people could be sick in the head. One time Harry was so 'sick' that he started to suck on a piece of plastic with red liquid inside. After he did that, his caretakers started to make him work. Maybe that's how people get better. Well, Harry would actually sweat and then…pass out. Hm…

"Oh! Butterbeer!" Hermione spotted The Three Broomsticks. "That'll warm you up."

It was rather nice. Hermione was thinking to herself as she and the other girl sat down in the tavern for young wizards. This girl was a great listener. Harry had told her that the girl was mute. Neat! Hermione started to ramble on about the classes and grades she wanted to take next year. The other girl didn't seem to mind, but she was starting to look…

----

"Sick!" Hagrid looked in shock as he stood in the doorway looking that the two girls.

"I don't know how this happened! Honest!" Hermione wailed. What would happen to her if Professor Snape found out?

The scruffy beard giant felt Hedwig's forehead. "My soul! Yer hotter than a dragon's lair, yeh are!"

Hedwig coughed.

It was the type of cough that had a person gagging. Hagrid and Hermione decided that if Hermione wanted to live another day, they'd have to get the girl better.

Hedwig decided that she didn't like being sick.

----

_She's late._ Severus looked at an hourglass and outside the window. _Everytime I let her go along she always…could she be getting bullied?_

The professor dropped his quill and hurried to the door of the classroom. With a single word, he summoned a house elf to gather his things and the girl's belongings (her homework) to his chambers as Snape decided to look for the girl.

"Severus!"

The man kept his face emotionless, but his irritation was growing again. "Headmaster, forgive me, but I have rather urgent business to attend to-"

"Severus…" Albus had such a sorry look on his face. "I think it best you return to your quarters for the night. If only for a short while."

"Albus, there's another thing I must really-"

"Murderer!"

The two stopped their arguing and looked down the hall. Standing with his arm in a sling and a bandaged head, a boy the age of a young teen looked accusingly at Severus. Half his face was burned and bandages that were falling off were torn as the boy tried to show Snape the pain he had gone through.

"You were supposed to help us but you sold us to the devil! And for what?" He shouted.

"The boy…" Severus was hit with guilt. He was one of the family members from that night at the last Death-eaters gathering. "You're alive?"

"Of course I'm alive! I wanted to see the man who killed my family! I'm going to kill you! You murderer! Did you enjoy it?"

"Mr. Sc-"

"Did you take pleasure in watching us writhe in pain? We screamed for mercy, I barely managed to escape, but my sister…my poor sister…I loved her…of course you wouldn't know about that. Who would ever love you?"

Severus remained quiet as he took the abuse in silence.

"I'm going…to kill you...no...death is too good for you!" The boy whipped out his wand and cast the Cruatious Curse.

Not even a defensive spell came from Severus.

"You deserve a fate worse than death! You're cruel and undeserving of mercy!"

When the wave of pain hit him, Snape started to rigidly fall to his knees.

"No!" Albus only had to wave his wand in the air and the boy was thrown against the wall. His wand fell from his hand and when the boy tried to reach out for it Dumbledore shouted, "_Ballista Abscisus_!"

Slowly, with every slow drag towards the wand, the boy started to turn gray. Before his fingers could wrap around the weapon, the boy had turned into stone.

The pain from the curse had left Severus, but the pain in his heart remained.

"Severus," Dumbledore knelt down and helped the man to his feet. He had tried to meet the younger man's eyes, but the man was fixated on the statue. "Do not worry about the boy. He will be back to normal in the morning. Please allow me to talk to him and please don't be bitter. Severus…"

Words of comfort from Albus fell on deaf ears as the Potions Master started to walk away slowly as he touched the wall for support.

----

Hedwig was so confused. She didn't feel as well as she should have. She had done everything right. Harry cleaned house, cooked, scrubbed the floors, she had come so close to fainting, but Hagrid splashed water on her face.

At this moment, she was trudging through the snow alone towards the entrance of the castle. Hermione had left before Hedwig. She had actually gotten a letter from Harry. And woop-dee-doo. Harry's new owl, the rainbow chicken had delivered it. Hedwig had wanted to throw a rock at it, but she was delighted when Hagrid scowled and told the thing to wait outside. When Hagrid saw the smile on Hedwig's face, he gave an awkward smile back.

Hedwig could still see the shocked look on that smug pigeon when the giant shouted. Ha. That'd teach it that there was only one owl in Hagrid's life. Not everyone loved the bald penguin.

Déjà vu.

Hedwig stopped when she saw Severus in the snow. What…was he doing? Was he waiting for her?

At the moment, Severus was sitting in the white ice powder, and leaning against the wall near the giant entrance to the castle. His eyes were closed, yet he wore a pained expression on his face. Something had happened. With great concern, Hedwig approached the motionless Potions Master. Was he hurt? Hedwig observed the man who was oblivious to her presence. When she was directly in front of him, she bent over to get a good look at his face. Tears. Again.

Hedwig frowned and reached out a hand to touch his face. He looked so tortured. Like a fire in a storm, he was constantly tormented from...from what? People didn't trust him, he was disliked, he obviously had a rough upbringing…he was a spy too, right? All around his spark of hope, happiness, and love was a raging storm that threatened to drown it out.

_I don't…want him to suffer anymore._ She said in her mind. _So that's what the owl wanted. He wanted Severus to be happy. Someone to be there. I think…I think I want the same thing too. I want you to be…_

Severus opened his eyes. The girl had a hand extended out to him with such compassion on her face. "It's you." He said quietly.

She nodded. That was practically the only thing she could do. Severus thought to himself. Even so, it was…so predictable and comfortably expected. For a short while, that idea occupied his mind instead of the boy turned into stone.

"Just for the sake of learning, a 'break' means a short recess. Not the entire afternoon."

Hedwig looked at him sheepishly as she pulled back her hand. She shook her head and lowered it with shame.

It was out of the ordinary, but Severus asked Hedwig a most peculiar question.

"Do you…" he began, "do you think…that I am…cruel?"

Severus's face was expressionless. Nothing was making him change. Not the cold, not even the soft snow that had started to fall. He was like a mannequin. Something without a soul. What could Hedwig do to make him…human?

Hedwig thought for a moment then an idea hit her.

Severus watched as the girl started to fumble through her clothes quickly. "Please don't…shuffle your attire like that, people might get the wrong-"

The girl turned around so her back faced the man. When she changed her direction once more, she pointed at Severus with her left hand and started to blow into a flute!

It was loud!  
The noise of the instrument made Severus jolt and cover his ears. What was she doing? Did she want to wake up the entire castle? He lowered his arms and glared at her.

"What are you-"

His anger subsided when he realized what she was doing.

Hedwig had sat down and was now diligently blowing through the pipe. She looked so determined to get the flute's notes out. They were owl notes. She was…singing him a song.

It was terrible, but…she was pouring her heart into it. Her face was red and her eyes were closed and her cheeks were puffed as she pushed her entire soul to the piece that had no melody-but what emotion! Well, emotion was what Severus assumed. The only thing he could hear coming from the flute was the hooting of an owl. As usual, it's the thought that counts. So for the next few minutes Severus patiently waited for the racket-er-song, to finish. When the girl had finished her piece, one person had applauded her, but it meant the world to her that it was the right one.

She sneezed.

Severus gritted his teeth. "You're sick, aren't you?"

Hedwig shook her head.

"Don't lie."

The professor sighed and stood up from the snow. He motioned to put his arm over the girl to warm her up, but thought it better to stop all kinds of physical contact with the girl. The two trampled through the snow as Severus berated the girl of her stupidity. She didn't mind it so much this time. At least he wasn't a lifeless doll anymore.

"Are you listening to me?"

Hedwig shook her head, and then realized her mistake. She tried to correct it with a nod, but Severus didn't buy it. "You still have homework."

So unfair! She inhaled a deep breath and blew into the pipe to show her frustration, making Severus nearly deaf.

"Give me that!" Though the man scowled and shouted out curses, he couldn't remember the last time someone had given a gift to him. Hedwin had though. That song…as amateurish as it was, he would cherish it for a long time. Of course, he'd never tell her that.

Another loud hoot came from the flute.

"Give it here!"


	9. Sick:In More Ways Than One

Author: Of Crimson Moonlight

Author's Note: There's a bit of awkward moments in this, and if your minds are pure and good, you'll find yourselves probably lost(Good for you though! You have a clean mind!). However, I apologize to all my readers. I'm sorry this has been so late. Biology is not a subject you wanna take from a professor that is...not...efficient. Anyways, if this chapter seems rushed, I apologize. The next two chapters are where my love and passion is being poured into and this was just something for kicks and giggles, although, I would never take this out of the story. Please forgive me if this chapter leaves you crying tears of sadness if it is badly written. Feedback is so very appreciated! If anything in the story is unclear please tell me so I can edit it.

Disclaimer: Only J. could make such wonderful characters from Harry Potter. Us common folk could only dream of inventing such things.

**Being Sick: In More Ways Than One**

"Go to sleep." Severus ordered with his eyes closed. Hedwig and the man were in his chambers. Being the sick person in the room, Severus told Hedwig that she was entitled to the bed as Severus was sitting in a well-cushioned chair that had been drawn to the bed.

Hedwig wasn't closing her eyes just yet.

"If you want to get better you have to rest." The man's head was tilted down and his arms in their comfortably crossed position. "Go to sleep."

The cloth on Hedwig's head was slipping. Before she could fix it herself, Severus already had his hand out to steady it. When it was rested on her forehead, Severus crossed his arms again and remained silent. Was he cold?

The man opened his eyes slightly and saw Hedwig looking at the sheets that covered her. "Don't bother in sharing it. You need all the warmth you can get. If you want the fire to get warmer let me know."

Hedwig nodded as the man shut his eyes again. She looked to the right of the bed. It was rather big. Why didn't they just share it?

…_Something's wrong with that question._ Hedwig turned onto her side.

It must be lonely. When Hedwig lived with Harry, she remembered feeling so happy when they shared a room. She wasn't lonely because he was there, and she knew he was less lonely when talking to her. But Snape…he didn't seem to have anyone.

She remembered when the whole house of Slytherin had their own sleeping party. All these friends grouped together. It was fun. She looked at Severus again with a bit of sadness. Was he lonely? Hedwig buried herself under the blankets again till only the top of her head was sticking out. Before she fell asleep, she made up her mind. She wouldn't let Severus be lonely anymore. After all, she did make that promise.

----

Severus rolled up his sleeves and tested the water. He was kneeling down on the floor next to the bathtub with the girl looking over his shoulder.

"One of the main preventions of becoming sick is hygiene." The man swirled his hand in the water and grunted. Satisfied that it was the right temperature he was looking for, he stood up and looked to Hedwig. "It's ready. If you need more water, turn the knob. I'll classes start soon, but I'll come back during break. Remember to get enough rest."

Hedwig heard the door close behind her and she edged closer to the water. Severus used the big bowl to take a bath? Hedwig coughed into her sleeve before looking at the water again. It was too deep for her liking. The water was still running too…this would be the first time using the thing for a bath. Usually she just put her head in the water. How did humans…Hedwig lifted her leg and dipped it into the tub. The water at the top reached the edge of its barrier and flowed over the tub. Hedwig, still fully clothed, entered the second leg. Deep! The water was really deep! Wah! She couldn't swim! What if she drowned? Hedwig stood up in the tub, but she did so too quickly. Her foot didn't have any grip on the floor and she slipped and fell into the water sideways.

The splash put more water onto the floor along. The tub was overflowing now, but Hedwig didn't pay any attention to that. She had been panicking at first, but…the water was warm, she wasn't drowning…and this was…fun!

The girl started to splash. A silent laugh went through her mouth as she made tiny waves throughout the pool of water. Now for the next step!

Hedwig looked at a container on the marble floor. Severus had called it… 'soap'.

She reached down to pick it up. Just as the bottle was over the tub, the cap, which she had been gripping, separated from the bottle and the contents of the bottle fell into the water.

_Oh no_. Hedwig started to worry.

----

In Potions class, Severus looked at the hourglass on his desk and back to the parchment laid out infront of him. It was blank. He was supposed to be writing down a grading rubric for the next assignment, but he couldn't stop looking at the cursed hourglass! Why was it moving so slowly? He could actually count each grain of sand as they fell down. Is this what it was like in his class for his students?

He could hear the students whispering amongst themselves. They were talking about Halloween. Severus knew that notes were being past around inviting everyone to parties. He remembered when he was younger. Whenever a note would pass his way disappointment would sting. On the note, it was never his name that donned the parchment. The invitation was always to someone else.

Lily had been offered to go so many times to Halloween parties but she refused each time. Instead, she was content to spend an evening talking with Severus. Severus remembered one year when he insisted that she go to at least one. Even though it was his idea, he held his breath every time he made the suggestion, hoping she'd say that she wouldn't go. That year, she had gotten an invitation from James Potter. She went and…Severus never spent another Halloween with Lily again. She was always invited to James's party after that. Of course, Severus was happy for her but…

It would have been nice to stay together.

Severus snorted.

Who'd want to spend Halloween with the Bat of the Dungeon?

He looked at the last of the sand falling to the bottom of the hourglass. "Class dismissed."

The man watched as the students pushed and shoved to get out of the room. No one wanted to be the last one in the room with the Potions Master. They'd rather get wrong information from their peers for a test than ask the 'Greasy Git' for help.

_What? I'm feeling sorry for myself now?_ Severus grinned a bit to himself.

It didn't last long.

Severus knew that he told Hedwig that he'd be back on his break but he felt like being alone. He didn't feel like entertaining that child any time soon. Instead, he just wanted to sulk.

"_You shouldn't do that." Lily nudged Severus on his shoulder. _

"_What?" Severus frowned. "I don't understand."_

"_You like to brood, don't you?" She smiled._

"_No, I just prefer not to set myself up for disappointment. The world is easier to look at this way." Severus said seriously._

"_By brooding?" Lily stretched a bit before giving out a yawn. "Well, if you ever feel really down or you feel like brooding…"_

_Severus rolled his eye. "What? Sing happy songs and drink till I'm as drunk as a fish?"_

"_No." Lily laughed. "If you feel like brooding, don't do it alone."_

_The look on Severus's face was emotionless, but inside he was so happy. _

"_So? How was your day?"_

_He swallowed before answering. "Well…it was terrible. Did you know that…"_

As these recent days traveled on, Snape found himself being reminded of Lily more and more. Ever since Hedwin came along the flashbacks of his schoolboy crush were more frequent. In the present time, Severus found himself acting kinder than he would have liked to think towards the girl. But now that he thought about it, the girl and he were rather stuck together. Perhaps like...friends? Maybe he could talk to her? Would she listen?

The Potions Master stood up from his desk and made up his mind to return to his quarters. She'd probably be hungry anyways. What if she had tried to cook? No, she wouldn't be that stupid…

_Then again…_Severus scurried out of the room. Several students saw him rushing towards the lower levels of the castle. The man was getting stranger and stranger each day to them.

_Knowing her, she must be doing something extremely stupid. She's probably starving while waiting for me. _

_Was_ she waiting for him? Or did she leave? He grit his teeth. If she wasn't resting, she'd never get better. She'd better not be wandering the castles. The last thing he needed was for her to get pneumonia.

"Oh! Professor Snape! About the lake-" Madame Pomfrey began, but Severus brushed her off as politely as he could without stopping. "That boy…" She shook her head and walked away from a crowded hall full of students. She'd have to try for a meeting with Snape another day. Perhaps Dumbledore can talk to him. Yes, that was the answer. The nurse began walking to the Headmaster's office.

"Hedwin?" Severus charged into the room and was relieved to see that there was no fire. "Hed…" Where was she? The room was empty and so was the bedroom. Severus was a bit discouraged. He came all the way here and she wasn't even-

Severus stopped at the sound of squelching noises beneath his feet. The carpet was soaked! He looked to the path of the bathroom. Why was it so wet? The man looked down and with a frown and trampled through the slushy floor towards the door. With a quick motion, the man opened the door and in a flash, waist deep water with millions of suds and bubbles came flowing from the bathroom.

The room had been filled with water? Severus was pushed onto his back when Hedwin had fallen out of the bathroom.

He was about to shout but a new and pleasant sound reached his ears. The two were covered with water and soap bubbles, his room was ruined, yet he couldn't be angry at this particular moment.

Why?

"Hedwin…" Severus looked at the girl with a bit of astonishment. Not too much, but just enough to make his mouth drop slightly. "You're laughing!"

It was true. The girl was making noises! Her voice was quiet, but she was laughing! Though his first instinct was to frown, he couldn't help but give a small smile.

----

Snape sighed "Well, let's get you dried. I'll have to tell Albus to substitute for Potions today. You obviously can't take care of yourself."

In truth, Severus was making an excuse not to leave. Actually, he was rather glad about this. After remembering that moment with Lily, he didn't want to spend the whole day brooding and gathering dark clouds in his mind. He wanted to smile. Well…he wouldn't _smile_ (the last smile had slipped. Since he didn't smile too often, his face was a bit sore now), but he wouldn't feel sorry for himself either. He'd forget about the boy who turned into stone the other day. He'd forget about the fact that the whole student populace despised him. Today, he'd just be Severus. Not Professor Snape, not the Bat, he'd be Severus.

"Would you mind," he asked the girl after the bedroom was tidied and her clothes had been changed into his old uniforms, "if I talked to you? What I mean is if you would listen. To me. When I need someone to talk to."

_What am I doing?_ He asked himself. The girl made no attempt to show that she _didn't_ want him to talk. But the situation, this moment of him _asking_ someone to listen to him, this was out of character for him. "On the floor."

Severus motioned Hedwig to sit on the ground. As she did so, he summoned a towel. "Don't move." He began to dry the girl's hair. "Would you mind listening?"

Hedwig started to think. So she'd be listening to him. That'd make him feel less lonely, right? The owlette shook her head that she didn't mind and started to be comforted by Severus's voice.

"Have you eaten?"

Hedwig cleared her throat and shook her head. It would seem the sudden ability to laugh had left her mouth...well, there was something goopy inside her throat.

"I'll have to get you something to eat then. You're clothes were drenched. Especially down here." Severus lifted up her hair and put it into a bun. The lower neck area was already cold from the water. "When you do that you're supposed to take your clothes off. Didn't anyone ever teach you?"

Hedwig shook her head again.

"Ah, that's right, I'm sorry. You're new at this. You should have told me…somehow. I guess you need to learn from experience. I'll be more thorough in teaching you next time. No…wait…maybe a book."

Something fell over in the other room. Severus's attention was drawn to it, but the girl sneezed. "You need to be in bed. "

He helped the girl under the covers and pulled his hand on her forehead. "I'll help you warm up. Hm, I've not had to care for someone like this in years. I guess I have to be more careful with you."

The sound of something being shifted came from the other room. What was that? Severus got up (He had actually seated himself next to Hedwig) and was about to exit the room, but the girl grabbed his sleeve.

"I'll be back. The best thing to do is rest right now. I'm going to find a few things to help…ah, I suppose I should have asked Madame Pomfrey."

Hedwig shook her head. She didn't want to be somewhere unfamiliar right now.

"You know you're causing me great trouble? I have to sit hear with you." The man was putting up a front. He was lying. "I suppose I have no choice. I'll stay here until you fall asleep."

The girl nodded. She made a motion with her hand like a book and opened her palms.

"You want me to read to you."

Hedwig nodded.

He was hesitant as first, but he surrendered when he saw the hopeful look on the girl's face. "Very well. But I have to see if there's someone to take over my class for today later on. What should I read?"

The raven-haired girl smiled brightly and pulled out a book that had been hidden under the pillow. Severus looked at a serving of tea that had just been poured with a levitation spell and that now rested on a small bureau. Just as he began to talk a sip from the liquid, he read the title.

_Muggle Slang_

He sputtered his drink and began to choke.

---Dumbledore's Suffering Questions---

How could things have gone so wrong?

It was supposed to be a simple visit for Madame Pomfrey, but…

Dumbledore sat himself down calmly in the Potions Classroom with over 30 pairs of eyes staring at him. The students wondered why the headmaster himself was teaching such a class. Where was Snape?

The old wizard's hands were shaking. Right now, he was seriously troubled. Once of his teachers may be… The headmaster recalled all he had heard in Severus's quarters. After hearing what he heard, he suspected Severus would not be finishing the class, but having a… 'good time'.

"_On the floor."_

Why would he have her on the floor?

_ "Don't move." _

Why shouldn't she move?

"_Would you mind?"_

Mind what!

_"Have you eaten?" _

The meanings 'eaten' can have! Dumbledore's face hit the desk.

_"I'll have to get you something to eat then. You're clothes were drenched. Especially down here." _

Dumbledore's brain was having an overload. Maybe it wasn't such a good idea to read the muggle slang book? Was his own mind perverted? No! Impossible!

"_When you do that you're supposed to take your clothes off. Didn't anyone ever teach you?"_

Severus had said so many things that couldn't be explained!

_"Ah, that's right, I'm sorry. You're new at this. You should have told me…somehow. I guess you need to learn from experience. I'll be more thorough in teaching you next time. No…wait…maybe a book."_

Why, Severus? Why?

_ "You need to be in bed. "_

When he and Minerva had seen him with the assistant that night, they were joking about the whole thing. Apparently Severus was serious! The courtyard incident was thought to have been a drunken mistake, but now…was there some deeper meaning behind the alcohol?

_ "I'll help you warm up. Hm, I've not had to care for someone like this in years. I guess I have to be more careful with you."_

Neville and Luna looked at each other when they heard Dumbledore yelp. They watched him as he started to head out the door, but it seemed he stopped. Someone was in the doorway speaking to the old man.

"What's wrong with the professor?" Neville asked Luna.

The girl shrugged. "Hold on for just a moment. I have to put in the right amount of the root…at the right time…"

The whole class was making a potion that needed exact time and precision. It was a rather difficult one. They were learning about the effects of aging and the fountain of youth. As a step closer towards finding an anti-age elixir, they were making their own age eraser. Anything that went wrong in the experiment…could cause…Luna moistened her lips. She didn't want the thing to explode.

A loud cry of happiness was heard outside and Dumbledore shouted, "He's not a pedophile!"

----Minerva's Answer----

After Albus had told her what he had heard, Minerva was in disbelief. The girl was too young wasn't she? What was Severus thinking? Well, it was his business after all, but she was but a child! She had to get to the bottom of this. First she should meet with Severus. Yes.

The woman knocked on the door to Severus's rooms. When there was no answer, she turned to leave, but the door opened.

"Severus-oh." Minerva looked down to see the pale girl. Her cheeks were a bit red. "Oh my! Did I interrupt? I'll come back another time!"

The professor was so embarrassed. She couldn't think of anything to do except leave, but then she heard a cough.

"Oh, you're sick. That explains why you're so red. I assume Severus is taking care of you." The woman gave a sigh of relief. "I'm sorry to bother you, but is Severus in?"

The girl shook her head.

Mcgonagall studied the girl, and pretty soon, she was nose to nose with the girl. "You…you're not…"

The younger of the two blinked.

"Human! You're not human! You used a transfiguration spell! So you're most likely older than you appear!" Minerva clasped her hands together. "That explains why you look so lost all the time. Oh, don't be so surprised I recognize you as an animal. I wouldn't be very good at my profession if I didn't. Though, I'm surprised I didn't realize this sooner."

Severus's young 'squeeze' as the professor liked to say it, seemed to be very impressed.

"Judging by the look of it, you're stuck like this. If you like, I think I can show you how to change back…It'll take time but it could be possible."

The girl's eyes went wide.

Mcgonagall smiled a bit. "Although, I must say that I'm happy that you are keeping him company."

She paused for a moment before continuing on. "Well, how about I have a houseelf get you something to eat?"

To Mcgonagall's surprise, the girl shook her head and pointed inside towards the kitchen. When the woman stuck her head inside, an aroma of something cooking on the stove hit her. Severus was _cooking_. He wasn't physically there in the room, but their was an enchantment over the pot. This was the new Severus.

As the woman said her goodbyes and walked towards the class where Albus had decided to substitute for she started to think. What was the girl before she became human? Was she a spy? Minerva didn't have the chance to think about this. The Headmaster had just walked out of the class and bumped into her.

"Albus, there's nothing to worry about."

The poor man was still white. "My old bones hope so, Minerva. Tell me you bring good news."

"You have nothing to fear, friend." Minerva smiled. "She's older than she looks."

It wasn't her secret to tell that the girl wasn't human. Minerva had decided this already and just prayed that Albus would catch on.

Dumbledore shouted for joy, "He's not a pedophile!"

Every concoction being made at that moment in the Potions Classroom exploded and caused a black cloud to fill the whole room.

Through the screams of panicked students and soot-filtered air, Dumbledore was laughing, and even if the lives of the students depended on it, no one, except Minerva, could know why.


	10. The First Word

Author: Crimson Moonlight

Author's Note: Thank you all for your reviews and patience (along with those who've added this story or me to their alerts). I'm very excited for Halloween, and I hope you all feel the emotions coming with it. I hope you all love this chapter, well, it's kind of a cliff hanger, so I'll try to hurry with the second part. Reviews are appreciated! :) you know who you are!

Disclaimer: The mind J.K. Rowling is he only one who could have invented such wonderful characters of Harry Potter.

The First Word

Hedwig was hiding.

Snape was in a dreadful mood, and it was from him that she was shielding herself from.

Hedwig was eager to learn, and Severus admired that in a student. But, after she had gotten better, she got more than she bargained for from him as a teacher. Instead of taking it step by step, the man made her leap and jump off the cliff! She wasn't told _why_ 'c' not only make a 'k' sound, but it also made a 's' sound. She was asked to spell words she didn't even know. She didn't even get a copy of the alphabet till today(it slipped his mind apparently)! It was like making something from thin air. It was impossible for her without the right steps, and Severus expected nothing but perfect. He had gone on about how they had lost time when she was sick.

After she got better with her letters, the man started to push her. They started with vocals. It was fun at first. Hedwig still hadn't been able to say anything yet, but she was able to get some noises out. As the days went on, he became harsher in his manner, his criticisms, and his grading! Hedwig didn't even know she was going to get tested on these things. He made her feel stupid and incompetent! The name-calling was the worst.

He called her dumb! How could he?

What he said was so painful. She was dumb. Stupid. An idiot. She was sitting on a rock that was surrounded my shallow water of the shoreline. The ice that had formed over the lake was more slush than a solid, but near the bank the ice had become stronger allowing her to walk on where shallow water would have been. A very chilly wind blew kept blowing her cloak up.

She sighed. This whole week she had been working hard, but it wasn't enough for him. Hedwig wanted Severus to be proud of her. She really did, but the way things were going now made her think she was far away from that happening. He was being so mean! He was cruel!

No, no, not cruel.

She remembered how kind he had been when she was sick. The days that Hedwig was sick was the best of her life. Almost as good as the day when she had met Harry. Perhaps, it was better being with Severus than Harry.

When she was an owl, Hedwig was always catering to Harry's needs. Wasn't it supposed to be that way with master and servant? It was different with Severus. He helped her get better. The man had even bought her new clothes so she didn't have to wear the off-colored white ones anymore. One time, she could even swear that he was singing her a lullaby. What happened to that Severus? He was being Snape right now.

That's right! From now on, when he was nice, he'd be Severus. When he was mean and insensitive, he'd be Snape.

Hedwig crossed her arms and nodded decisively. In a moment she started to sob. How could he call her dumb? It hurt when he said that. Hedwig took out the flute that Hermione had given her. This was the cause of the fight.

Hedwig had kept on using the flute to express herself. At first, the man seemed to not mind, but then then Severus-no, Snape- then Snape said, "If you keep on using that to substitute your lack of voice, you'll remain dumb for the rest of your life."

_Remain dumb._

It felt that the world had swallowed her whole.

So she was already dumb? Small whimpers had started to come from her mouth. Was she stupid? That was why she couldn't say anything? Even so, he shouldn't have been so…mean. She put the flute to her lips to spite the man who was nowhere near her. Just before she was going to blow through it, she stopped. Hedwig put the thing back under her coat and pulled out a piece of paper. On it was a paper with the alphabet. Hedwig pointed to the letter 's' and the paper started to fold itself into a pair of lips.

"Ssssssssss" the pair of lips made the sound of the letter before returning itself to its original form.

Hedwig made sure no one was around. She lifted her lips apart and tried. A rather pathetic 's' sound came out, and she sighed. Instead of 'ssss' she got 'sh'.

She crossed her legs Indian style on the rock and began to practice some more. She wanted him to be shocked at her progress before she went back. Her mouth was rather dry though. The whole time after Snape had called her 'dumb', she was vexing him by making constant noise with the flute. A branch that was overhanging her rock was slicked with icicles. She broke of a piece and started to moisten her lips.

Hedwig swallowed. "Shhhhhh…ttttsss….sssssssss!"

She almost dropped the paper from shock. She did it! She made an 's' sound! For a split second she turned around expecting Severus to be there, but then she remembered they had a fight.

This low feeling…was kind of familiar.

That's right.

Her fight with Harry. Well, it wasn't really a 'fight'. But Harry had been angry at her and gotten himself a new owl. Or, that's how she saw it anyways. Hedwig looked up. Would Severus get himself a new student?

No…who'd want to be _his_ student? This thought comforted her, but it was short-lived.

Hedwig wanted to be his student, but she didn't want to admit it.

She looked at the paper again. What letter next? 'n' or 'e'?

As she realized that the wind was her only companion out of the castle walls, she started to feel…lonely. Was _he_ feeling the same way right now? Probably not. Hedwig was saddened at this. The man had a pretty strong defense against these feelings it seemed.

----

"So I finally completed my entire card collection! See?" A student from the House of Ravenclaw was proudly showing off his latest card. "I finally got Dumbledore!"

The other student was far from impressed. "You're joking right? I've got fifty of him at least. Dumbledore's the easiest to find."

"What?" The first student whined. "Then why didn't you give me one?"

A dark shade passed the open door to the room after its head had quickly peeked in.

The two students paused to look at the door then at each other.

"Was that Professor Snape?"

"I…think it looked like him… but…he looked-"

"Worried."

They looked at the door again and laughed. "Yeah. As if that'll happen sometime soon. Hey, have you checked out that new girl in his class? His 'assistant?'"

"Yeah. Nothing special."

"I think she'll get invited to the party. She's nice. In my class, she sneaked into the supplies and got extra ingredients for people who did their potions wrong. Snape didn't even notice."

"Wait, which party?"

"Halloween's coming soon. Everyone's handing out invitations now so that people can mark the day before another party comes along to steal the limelight. The students from America are having some American holiday party for next month too. Homesick, I guess. I'm definitely crashing that one. It sounds fun."

The other student looked at his friend with a bizarre look on his face. "Why wasn't I invited?"

"You weren't?"

An awkward silence filled the room.

----

A squeak pierced the ears of Luna Lovegood.

"Neville!" Luna shouted as the clumsy boy ran into the wall.

"Ow!" He dropped his books and clung to his poor nose.

"What on earth were you thinking?"

"I-I was so scared! Did you see him?"

"See who, Neville?"

"Professor Snape!" Longbottom bent down to pick up his books while the blond started to help him.

"I don't think so…"

"B-but he was there! In the corner! Looking straight at me!"

"Oh, Neville."

The boy's ears turned red. "Sorry I made such a silly noise."

"Oh. That was nothing. By the lake, I heard the most peculiar sound. It was like a harpy. Rather slurred in a way. Hm, oh, while we're on the topic of the lake, it might be best to stay away."

"Huh? Why?"

Luna handed the boy his books, "You know those boys that Hermione beat up from Hufflepuff?"

"Yeah. I thought they were expelled."

"Dumbledore has a bigger heart than expected. Anyways," Luna brushed a lock of hair from her face. "They're hanging around the lake. Just stay away from them. Ever since Hermione beat their leader, they've been on edge. They're just waiting to pick on someone."

----

"This is creepy." Ron's voice cracked a bit. "I'm telling you something odd is going on."

His two other friends ignored him. Harry was busy reading a book, and Hermione was writing a paper for extra credit.

"Are you not listening to me?" The ginger head whined. "And did you hear the rumors going around? Something's not right about that girl he's with. I asked Dumbledore about it when I got to see him. He and I saw Severus actually…doing something weird with his face. Dumbledore said the man was _smiling_! Can you believe it? When I stated that the Bat had nothing to smile about, the Headmaster said that I'd understand when I'm married. What the devil was he talking about? Now he's gloomy! More than usual! I can actually see storm clouds gathering over his head!"

The two others were silent.

"Guys!"

Harry and Hermione sighed.

"What, Ron?" Harry closed the book he was reading and gave his friend some attention. "Yes?"

"The way he's been creeping about the castle and such. Don't you think it's scary? That girl is strange too. She never talks, or has friends. All she does is hang around Snape. Like a dog."

"You're being ridiculous. That girl is too sweet, and Snape, he's a creep." Harry supported his head on one hand. "She probably owes him something. That's the only reason she'd hang around that…"

Hermione heard a bit of bitterness in the boy's voice.

"Yes, but this time it's really scary!" Ron emphasized his words with his hands.

Hermione looked at Harry's book as she got up. "American sports?"

"Ah, yeah." Harry covered the top of the book. "I got invited to a party and I heard that there's going to be games. Just want to be prepared."

"You should be using that determination for studying." Hermione said with disapproval. "Anyways, I'm going to Hagrid's now. Are you guys coming?"

Ron frowned. "I thought you needed another owl flute since you gave that girl the one needed-"

"It was _you_?" An angry voice directed itself at the trio's direction. Snape entire being became very threatening. "You gave her that insufferable piece of hollow twig?"

Hermione kept herself from shaking and acted calm and collected. "Yes, sir. Is there a problem?"

"She hasn't stopped breathing life into that unbearable instrument since she got it. And now I know who to blame." His eyes narrowed.

"Well, at least she's got something now." Hermione grumbled. "She could have been seriously hurt _that_ time. All because she couldn't make a noise! And I hear you're being unreasonable with your lessons. Why are you so hard on her?"

Snape frowned and leaned forward to the student. "And how would _you_ know of any of this, Miss Granger?"

Ron and Harry looked at each other. Hermione was arguing. With Professor Snape. In the library. The tension between the two most intelligent people in the room was becoming so thick, no one could breath.

"I saw her leaving the castle at the gates. She was so upset she didn't even hear me calling her." Hermione lowered her voice. "What did you say to her?"

Severus's cold demeanor melted away. Was she that upset? This whole morning he'd been looking for the girl, yet he should have known to look outside the castle.

Why was she so distraught? All he did was point out the truth. If she didn't stop using that flute, she'd never learn how to speak. She had already begun to rely on the thing to express her emotions. All of them.

Severus pinched the bridge of his nose. _And there were so many emotions!_

Being dumb was no excuse to parade around a room making noise that shouldn't be classified as music. Wait…did she know that the word 'dumb' also meant 'mute'? Was that why she ran off?

What a mistake. That would explain things. Now he had to clear up the misunderstanding. She must be feeling hurt right now. He'd have to apologize…no! Why should he be have to apologize. It was her fault for picking up the wrong meaning! Owls were supposed to be smart.

The man was arguing himself. He didn't want to feel the guilt that was building up. It wasn't even guilt he should be feeling, it was just taking over his emotions. He tried to shut it out. Severus decided he wasn't going to apologize for something she didn't understand.

"Uh…" Ron stood up from his seat. " 'Mione, let's go to Hagrid's now. He'll be needing help to get…er…fish. To go fishing."

"Yeah." Harry took this as Ron's excuse to get away from the professor who seemed to be in deep thought. "Let's go."

Ron nodded. "You have the flute to lure the beast right?"

Hermione nodded.

Severus stopped. A beast? Something about the lake…Severus recalled something about Madame Pomfrey. So it was Hagrid's pet. That explained it. He'd have to have a talk with the gamekeeper. Just as he passed the little trio to exit the great hall, Neville and Luna joined the group.

"Leaving so soon?" Luna asked.

"Yeah, we're going to help Hagrid." Ron tugged on Hermione's sleeve.

Neville interrupted. "Are you sure you want to go down there? Those Hufflepuffs that Hermione ruffled up are hanging around down there. Oh, are you going to see that girl Harry?"

Harry was puzzled. "Girl?"

"Yeah, the girl you said looks familiar. The one who liked your owl."

Hermione thought about this for a moment, and then let out a terrified cry. "She's at the lake?"

A new strand of thoughts entered Severus's mind. 'Flute ' 'lure' 'lake beast'. If Hedwin still had the flute on her…

Hermione started to race out the room with a very horrified looking Snape following her.

---

It was too hard to get the whole word. As much as Hedwig tried, she could only get out the first syllable. Would that be enough? No. She bowed her head. She was tired of practicing for now. The wind blew once again to add to the melancholy mood that surrounded her.

Why was it so hard to form words. She felt like a child while everyone around her could speak so easily. Some people even spoke two languages! Hedwig's mind hurt at the mere thought of a bilingual. Darn those people! Hedwig became frustrated. She pulled out the flute and put the end in her mouth.

"Hedwin!"

She lowered her eyebrows. And what was with that stupid name! Her name was 'Hedwig'! Not Hedwin. What idiot would call her that anyways? Most people around here addressed her as 'you' or 'hey'. But not this person. They always have to be one letter off!

She stood up from the rock and onto the hardened water. She turned to face the person.

Hedwig opened her mouth to shout, but it wasn't Severus.

An angry looking trio had come up from behind. "Never thought we'd find you without your precious Snape."

"What is he? Your bodyguard?"

Hedwig stood up quickly from the stone and planted her feet onto the ice below her. The grip she had on the flute tightened so quickly that her knuckles began to turn whiter than her usually pale color. These boys were the same ones who had harassed Hagrid.

One of the boys realized she had a flute in her hand. "You play? Why don't you give that here?"

The flute was the only thing that Hedwig could use to make any significant noise. She quickly scanned the scenery behind the slowly advancing boys on the shore. There was no one around! Of course, when she was upset it seemed a good idea at the time to be alone. Now, it seemed such a stupid idea….stupid? So she was stupid. Hedwig started to cry again.

The three boys looked at the girl with shock. They didn't mean to make her cry. Yet, anyways. First things first. They had to get the noisemaker away from the girl. The leader of the group smiled innocently at her. Because of stupid Granger, Snape, and that ugly giant, the three had ended up in serious trouble. The one thing they all had in common was that they seemed to have become fond of the girl called, Hedwin. If anything were to happen to her, they'd be killing three birds with one stone.

"Look, I want to apologize for acting so rude that night." He smiled again. "Your name's Hedwin, right? I heard Professor Snape talk to you so I picked it up." To any girl, the boy would have been charming, but Hedwig wasn't one to be fooled so easily. This boy…

"Mind if we talk for a while?" He reached out for her hand.

This boy…was lying. Hedwig pulled away and slapped the hand that was offered to her.

The other two put up their guard. "Why you little-"

Hedwig used the flute to hit the boy and ran away from the group towards the center of the lake. In her haste, she didn't realize that the ice was becoming thinner.

"Forget the formalities and get her! And that bloody flute!" The boy was furious now.

Just as Hedwig was about to take another step onto the ice, a strange feeling of warning told her to stop. She wasn't able to perform a halt in time and one of her footsteps fell onto the thin ice. The sound of cracking hit her ears and she tried to stop herself before completely submerging into the cold, dark and murky water. Luckily, the ice beneath her center of gravity didn't give, but her foot was already in the water. It was so cold! Hedwig took a quick intake of air. It stung!

"You know what I hate the most about people like you?"

Hedwig stood up straight and leaned on her better leg.

"You're a freak." The leader was making fists with his hands, "And like all freaks, they group together. Like Snape, for example."

The fine hairs on Hedwig's neck stood on end.

"That greasy haired git…just seeing him makes my blood boil." He continued. "The man is a murderer and Dumbledore still allows him to wander free in a school? There's something wrong here. Snape is a cold-blooded-"

The boy didn't get a chance to finish his criticisms. He was interrupted when a fist collided with his jaw.

A thought clicked in his head. _This girl has a mean…right hook!_ That was his last thoughts before he was tackled to the ground. Hedwig didn't let up her attacks just like last time. How dare this boy, this child mock her Severus? This pathetic human would be foolish enough to ridicule her master-

She paused.

Hedwig found herself standing up for Severus. It was the same with Harry. Whenever Dudley would try to harm Harry, Hedwig would get infuriated. And now, here she was, defending Severus. She was defending the jerk who called her 'dumb'! She punched the guy even harder. When his comrades came to help him, she even kicked a boy under the belt. Without realizing the strain she had put him under she continued to hit the boy on the ground. The third one barely got a hold of her when she turned around and bit the kid on the neck.

She was acting as if she was possessed!

"Grab her arms! You idiot!" Blood was flowing from the leader's face as he got up. The second boy quickly went to the third's aid and held Hedwig's arms firmly behind her.

Hedwig was crying again now. Not because she was scared, but because no beating in the world could be more painful than Severus's words.

The leader picked up the flute that Hedwig had dropped and threw it into the wind. "You won't be needing that. Ugh, this is the second time my beautiful face has been bruised by your-" He looked at the blood dripping down from the girl's fingertips. She had also scratched, "hands….Hold her tight alright? Don't' let her loose till I carve her face up good."

_Good? Good is an adjective. Adjectives don't describe verbs. He should have said 'well'. As in, I'm going to carve her face well. Wait. Was that right?_ She almost laughed. Hedwig was thinking about grammar at a time like this? She was thinking of Severus's voice. His stupid voice, his stupid face, his stupid way…tears formed and fell…his stupid way of taking care of her. Why couldn't she get these stupid thoughts of him out of her head?

She really missed him.

"Don't-"

"Don't you touch her!"

Two voices made the group freeze. Two voices had said one word in unison. Was it her imagination? Only one finished the phrase, but Hedwig was sure that there were two voices. She looked up from the ice that she found out was breaking and into the short distance.

Harry!

----

Severus was first to see the four figures on the lake. Without thinking, he began to run onto the ice. He didn't care if the ice was thinning, he didn't care that he was showing more emotion than he had ever shown in his entire life. Hedwin could die!

It would be all his fault from such a small misunderstanding. He shouldn't have yelled either. There were so many things to explain and take blame for. She can't die! Not now! He never even thanked her for that song she had played. It was implied that he liked it, but he never…

His heart almost stopped. In the hands of one of the boys was a knife. Rage overcame him. They were going to hurt her! For what?

"Don't-" Severus began his words, but a knight in shining armor cut back his moment of heroism.

"Don't you touch her!" Harry Potter, the offspring of his enemy, took the limelight.

It was alright. As long as Hedwin was safe. That's what Severus tried to tell himself, but he felt a dark feeling come over him when Hedwin looked at Potter.

----

If Severus had only known that Hewig wasn't looking at the Golden Boy. Rather, she was looking at the dark figure looming behind him. She couldn't believe that he actually came to find her.

"Petrificus Totalus!" Hermione froze the boy with the knife while Ron patted the boy on the back.

Ron spoke with sympathy, "Sorry, but you kind of deserved it." He was referring to when the girl had kicked him in the lower region.

Severus went to the boy behind Hedwig and aimed his wand at the student's neck. "Do I really need to explain the routine?"

The boy took out his wand slowly and offered it to the professor as Harry went straight to Hedwig.

"Are you alright?" Potter seemed to be seriously concerned, and he lifted Hedwig' hands into his own. "Your hands! There's blood…does it hurt?"

He was being so considerate, but Hedwig wasn't listening to him. She pulled away and was about to tug on Severus's robes but he stopped with his back turned to her as he was making his way to the shore. "We'll talk later."

That cold tone of voice wasn't the one she wanted to hear. So he was angry?

_I missed you so much in such a short time, and you didn't even…_

Hedwig's outstretched hand fell to her side and the Potions Master began to walk again with the idiot hufflepuff infront of him. It seemed that everything was going to be just as it was from the day she met Severus.

As the rest began making the light trek towards shore, an odd hollow sound reached everyone's ears.

Hermione froze, "That's the flute! We have to get off the lake!"

A strong wind picked up speed and the lost flute began to cry shrilly into the air. Where was it?

Call it animal instinct. That was probably what it was. Hedwig sensed something moving underneath the ice. It wasn't heading towards her or the other students…no, it was heading towards…

It was funny how time worked. Whenever a person is having fun time seems to have a twisted sense of humor and speeds up the minutes making the hours fly by. However, this was not that time. For some reason, Hedwig found herself moving it what seemed to be slow motion. She saw danger coming, and she couldn't move fast enough to reach Severus in time. Was it her own physical strength or the fact that time seemed to be taunting her?

If only she could run faster!

She closed her eyes and her emotions released adrenaline into her veins. Fear was pumping her with the energy needed to run faster. She was so close!

She had to get his attention! "Sev!"

----

"Sev!"

_Did she just say my name?_ Severus turned around, but a horrifying sight would come all too soon. Hedwig pushed Severus back just in time as a long pale pink tentacle broke through the frozen lake and wrapped its way around Hedwin's leg. It pulled her to the ground and dragged her towards the broken ice and the cold, black water.


	11. Spare the Kiss of Life

Author: Of Crimson Moonlight

Author's Note: Uwaahhh so short! This chapter's so short! I'm so sorry! I hate cliffhangers and I left you one I'm so sorry! Sorry! I pulled an all nighter and this is all I got? Well, I guess I didn't want to write a fight scene. I got to many of those in other things so I got tired of those. We need emotional parts! Yes! Heart-touching, soul-reaching, stories! Okay, enjoy this chapter please. Thank you for the reviews! My heart is touched. You know who you are! And you all who have added me or this story to your alerts or favorites, I thank you!

Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling is the only one who could have thought up the exciting and thrilling world of Harry Potter. It makes us all wish we could use brooms to fly. Actually, I'd like an umbrella that makes people know who I am. Then I could be friends with Tom Felton or Daniel Radcliffe. Read the chapter!

Spare the Kiss of Life

"Get Dumbledore!" Hermione shouted.

Ron grunted when a hit to the jaw knocked him down. The Hufflepuff he'd been holding up began to run. As Ron was about to draw his wand, Harry stopped him.

"Forget the coward!" He yelled, "We have to help Snape and the girl! Hermione, you get a professor, or-Hagrid! He'll know what to do!"

"What about you?" Hermione was reluctant to leave the boys alone. "You can't go in, you'll freeze to death!"

"Well what are we supposed to do? They need air! We need to get them out!" Ron yelled, then added when he saw Harry looking at the water eagerly then at Weasley. "…Not that I want to go in. That'd be crazy. Right, Harry?"

"Melt the ice! That way they'll have somewhere to come up." Harry took out his wand. "_Glacialis Redire!_"

That was all he was going to do? Hermione gave an uncertain look to her friend. She highly doubted that Harry would do nothing brash, but now wasn't the time to make sure he wasn't lying. "Don't do anything stupid." With those last words of warning, she was off.

Harry watched as Hermione left, and took a glance at the circle of water where the two people had vanished. He still could not believe what she had witnessed.

The same man who had made his years of Hogwarts uncomfortable, the same man whom his father and godfather detested was now risking his life for another person other than himself. Snape was actually a good person? When the girl had called out to Snape, it looked as if the Professor's heart had stopped. Then he did the unthinkable. He started to run after the girl, and when he was close enough, he jumped to grab her hand. She screamed his name again before going under the water and never had Harry seen Severus Snape's face so desperate and panicked.

The two had been submerged for more than four minutes. In that time, the trio had witnessed a green glow underneath the ice among others, red, purple, but there was no sign of the two having resurfaced. If they didn't come up for air soon…

Gasping and coughing interrupted the wind's sighs. It was the girl! She had finally come up to one of the breaks through the ice, near the shoreline.

"Ron!" Harry motioned to the red head and hurried to the girl. Her hands were shaking as she clawed at the breaking chunks of frozen ice. "Are you alright? Where's Snape?"

The girl's breathing was quick-paced. It was clear that her body was going through shock. The human body could only take so much cold.

"Well, come on then!" Ron held out his hand to pull the girl up, but she wasn't paying him any attention. She was too busy looking around the lake. "He didn't come up."

Ron and Harry both grabbed an arm and pulled her carefully onto a hard surface of lake. Harry expected anger, rage, sadness, thankfulness, but she didn't do anything. When he and Ron had let her go, she sank to her knees and just sat there. Crying.

The redhead rested a hand on her back, but she started to wail. It wasn't an ugly loud insensitive wail; it was the type that showed such sorrow. In a way, it sounded beautiful, but so heart wrenching at the same time.

"I'm sorry, but…I don't think there's anything we can-" Ron was interrupted by a splash. When he turned to look at Harry, he realized that his friend was gone. All that was left was the boy's coat near the edge of the water.

----

_So this is how it would end? _

Severus didn't try to struggle anymore. The creature was already dead but its cups to ensnare its prey were determined to hold Severus till death and beyond. The black ink from the dead corpse had spread around the two and it was impossible to see anything now. Hedwin got away. That was all that mattered.

Or, so he tried to tell himself.

Truthfully, he didn't like this ending. Potter would get the glory, again.

Everyone would see that boy as the hero.

No…that wasn't why he was so bitter about dying right now. _She_ would see the Hogwarts Celebrity as her hero. Not him, Severus, but she'd only have eyes for the other boy, Potter. To hell with everybody else, he would have been happy if she saw him as the knight for once. Not the demon of the dungeon.

Severus swore. He couldn't hold his breath for much longer. Only one hand was free and the other was against his body. The long tentacle had wrapped around the armed hand and his person leaving a useless arm. Otherwise he could probably make a mask or something.

He was really going to die here, then?

Well, he had a good run. At least now he can die peacefully. Peace…. If he had been able to, Severus would have sighed. When he thought of the word 'peace' he remembered the phrase 'holy peace'. It was the same phrase that was could be transformed into the latin word 'Hedwin.' If he were to die here, who'd take care of her?

His relaxed position went rigid.

Would she be crying? She _must_ be crying. The girl could cry an amount of the entire River Styx.

He struggled for a bit as he remembered the time of when they first interacted. Not the time when he bit her, but when they had gone out. She wasn't disgusted with him.

Severus started to tear at the creature's suctions and began ripping some flesh. Both from him and the monster's.

Her smile, that stupid smile that said 'everything would be fine', or 'nothing in the world matters as long as you're okay' or, 'talk to me, I'll listen' even though some of those were absolute lies, it made him feel…loved. That time when she had played that ridiculous song…she really cared for him, didn't she?

Severus gritted his teeth and began to shred through the dead corpse surrounding him. He just needed to get his wand free, but would he be able to make it to the surface on time?

_Don't think about that yet. Concentrate on what has to be done now._

----

"This be all my fault!" Hagrid blubbered through his words as he tried to compose himself. The gently giant was keeping up with Hermione as fast as he could, but every so often he would started to slow down as the guilt began to weigh heavy in his heart. "It'll only get worse, I tell yeh!"

"How could it possibly get worse?" Hermione asked before she saw the split in the road. One leading to the lake and the other to the castle. She would have to get the Headmaster, or at least Madame Pomfrey. The both of them would be best!

"Yeh don't know, do yeh?" Hagrid started to cry louder. "The way Squishy-"

"Squishy?"

"That be 'is name."

"Of course. Hagrid, please hurry!"

"When 'e touches a thing with 'is sticklers they leave a black mark, they do. When that mark mixes with the water it…it..."

"Hagrid, what?" Hermione shouted.

"It paralyzes yeh!"

"Oh no! Hagrid!"

"Ah know, Ah know, Ah've killed 'em." Hagrid buried his face in his hands. Hermione almost dropped to the ground in defeat, but instead she made a fist. "Hagrid, we have to try! We have to!"

The half giant looked at the muggle born Gryffindor and nodded slowly with his tears already smudged around his face. "Alright 'Mione, we'll try."

----

_It's getting more and more difficult to reach the surface-is it because of fatigue? _

The silence of being in the water was almost too much for Severus that he wanted to scream. Remembering that he couldn't afford to waste his air supply, he kept his mouth shut. The quiet was unbearable, but he had to tolerate it. The time it was taking him to reach the top of the lake seemed unreasonable now. It was then that it hit Severus.

_I'm slowing down! It's me! I can't move anymore!_

His body went limp just as a hand reached out for him and a quick flash, Severus was sure it was a hallucination, of green eyes. So much like Lily's.

----

Five minutes had passed, and there was no Harry, no Severus, and no Squishy. Hagrid had gotten to the lake and ever since then, he hadn't stopped playing the flute. He kept hoping the creature would rise, but something was wrong. The giant suspected that the creature was dead, but what of the other two?

"Snape's been in longer than Harry…he might be…" Ron gave a frightened look to Hagrid. "Why isn't Hermione back yet?"

Hagrid didn't stop blowing through the flute. Not even to answer the boy.

Hedwig had stopped her wailing, but she was still crying. Her tiny frame shook in a rhythmic beat as she cried and tried to breath at the same time. He was dead! Severus, Severus was dead!

"Help!"

_I was supposed to help him…and instead-instead-_ She was even crying her in mind- _Instead, I get him killed! He tried to save me and I let him die!_

"Help!"

_Severus…I'm sorry!_

"Are you all deaf? I said help! Hagrid, stop blowing that stupid piece of hollow bark and help me!"

Ron tapped the giant's side and pointed out a distance a bit farther from them. "It's Harry! And he's got Snape!"

"Hurry! He's heavy!"

Hedwig stood up and began to limp. Her legs had been numbed from the ice and to top it off, they were very hard to move. Hagrid, seeing her difficulty, picked her up and started to slide over (he feared he might break the ice) towards the two others. "We're comin'!"

Ron was the first to arrive near them since he could move faster. He knelt down and kept the two afloat until Hagrid was near and able to lift the two out of the water with ease. Ron draped over Harry's coat around the freezing boy and started pat Harry's back. "You alright?"

"Yeah. How's Snape?"

The guys looked at the motionless body with the girl leaning over him on her knees.

Hedwig placed her hand on his face, but he wasn't breathing. She put an ear to his chest, but there was no heartbeat. She started to shake him gently but he didn't wake up.

_What-what do I do? What do I do? Wake up! Please wake up!_

She started to pound on his chest, but there wasn't any sign of life. Hedwig buried her face in the Potion Master's chest and started to cry. He was dead.

_No, no, no, no, no, no! You can't die!_ Hedwig started to pound harder. _You. Can't. Die!_

With her antics, everyone failed to see the water coming out from the man's mouth, and the slow, yet steady up and down from the man's breathing.

"Wait!" Harry said seriously.

Everyone turned to him.

"I know this thing muggles do. CPR." Harry scratched the back of his neck and kneeled down on the other side of Snape. "Have you all heard of it?"

Hagrid and Ron shook their head.

Harry groaned. "I'm going to give Snape air."

Hedwig looked up at Harry. Oh! She knew what that was! When she had submerged below the water, she couldn't breath. Severus gave some of his air to her so she could hold her breath longer.

"Don't think what I'm about to do is gross, it's to save his life!"

Hedwig nodded.

Ron's eyes widened when he saw his best friend leaning in towards Snape with lips first. "What are you _doing_!"

Harry paused and shouted nervously, "The kiss of life!"

"I'll…die…first."

Everyone looked to where the deep voice had come from. It was the Potions Master.

Ignoring everyone else, Severus looked at Hedwig who already looked like she was going to cry again. "Are you going to cry?"

Hedwig shook her head.

"Are you lying?"

She shook her head again.

"Liar."

She nodded.

Severus sighed and put his hand against her face. "Don't cry. It's exhausting to watch and it makes me uncomfortable." _It's painful to see you cry._ "And…I'm sorry I called you dumb."

He coughed. "I didn't mean you were incompetent. 'Dumb' actually means 'mute'. I don't think you're stupid, so don't cry."

_I almost lost you! How could you expect me not to cry?_ Hedwig was holding back. She was trying so hard to not cry and the more she tried not to, the more she wanted to.

"Sev…" She covered her face with her sleeve.

The man pulled down the arm that covered her face and gave her a very small smile. "I'm very proud of you, Hedwin."

She didn't cry.


	12. Halloween of Tears

Author: Of Crimson Moonlight

Author's Note: I poured out my soul into this chapter. Please enjoy it. Thank you for all the reviews and all the alerts for stories and author alerts. I love them all. Please comment on this chapter. I really worked hard and I hope to reap what I've sown. Please let me know what you think. To clear the confusion, Severus has gotten Hedwig's name mixed up. He refers to her as Hedwin which seems in some way to calm him when he's in distress. Because of his insisting, everyone in the castle has started to say her name wrong. I was going to upload this sooner, but the ending needed much work, and I finally concluded it with this one. Please comment.

Disclaimer: Oh, I wish that I had thought of this wonderful world. Knowing me, I'd probably mess it up. Only J.K. Rowling could have come up with such wonderful characters from Harry Potter.

Halloween of Tears

Severus heard the irritating noise in the class once more. It was as if someone had magnified the sound to ten times its average volume. It was the sound of parchment being folded in have, mixed with the sound of hands and fingers touching it and being passed down from person to person. More Halloween invitations were being passed out for tonight.

Damn Halloween.

He ignored the noise and continued with the lecture. There it was again. Instead of completely ignoring it this time, Snape grabbed a piece of chalk and pressed down hard on the blackboard. The sound of the dying piece of chalk's wail, made everyone cringe. He didn't let up until he heard a distinct inhale of air. He looked at the side of the room where Hedwin was sitting and saw her wince. Realizing that he must have caused her pain, he quickly stopped his hand.

"As I was saying…the scales have a bruising affect…"

Hedwig's ears relaxed at the sound of Severus's voice. She looked down at the paper in front of her and began working on her letters once again. As she was minding her own business, something hit her.

She was stunned. She looked on the ground and there, lying as if it was innocent, was a paper bat. Hedwig looked around to see a boy smiling at her. He gave a small wave and then looked back to his cauldron. Hedwig looked at the paper bat and picked it up. The enchantment was activated and the bat started to unfold. The letter said this:

_Dear Miss Hedwin,_

_To celebrate the festivity of the 30__th__ of October, I would love to invite you to the Ravenclaw's House Halloween Bash. I promise you'll have a good time. Please consider it. It would be my honor to be your escort._

_Yours unconditionally,_

_Marcus Belby_

Later that day, she received another one from a different class and house.

_To the Elegant Hedwin,_

_The House of Hufflepuff is pleased to announce that we wish to see you tonight at our Halloween Bash. I would personally love to lead you and give you a grand tour of my house. I think you're cute. Please come. I'll swing by your quarters for an answer. No one wants to spend Halloween with the scary and frightening Greasy Git of a Potions Master._

_Hoping for a yes,_

_Summers (Please say yes. I guarantee you'll enjoy the night)_

During the next class, she received another letter. This time, it was from Slytherin.

_To the Lovely Assistant of the Potions Master,_

_Assuming that Draco hasn't snatched you up for a date tonight, it's my pleasure to invite you as my date for the Slytherin House Halloween Bash. There will be drinks, drinks and did I mention drinks? So much you can drown a fish! If you want a __really good time__, be my date! I'll meet you later for an answer. It can't be no!_

_I'm a bad boy,_

_Urquhart_

----

Hedwig was puzzled. She didn't need anymore friends. As Severus announced that class was over, just in time for lunch, she pushed back her chair only to scrape against something. It was another note! Hedwig shrieked. It was from Harry! But there was a problem. The chair had torn the parchment up so badly that she couldn't read it clearly. She flattened it out as best she could and tried to read it. The ink had smudged and the paper was damaged, but she tried her best. From what she could tell, he wanted to meet her at 12 underneath the giant bell! She looked at Severus, who was still at his desk. He wouldn't mind would he? She got up from her desk, set the few notes onto Severus's desk, and waved goodbye to Severus. It would have taken her too long to explain. Instead, she tried to explain all she knew by shaking her hands and rushed to where the giant pendulum swung as it kept time for the school.

It was a few minutes before twelve, but she had made it. As Hedwig watched the other student walk bye, she kept her eyes open her Harry. She didn't want to blink for fear of missing him. He was rather short. If she were to blink for just a moment, she might miss him. Even when the lunch break was over, she stayed.

Why did this feel so familiar?

Hedwig shook the terribly familiar feeling and concentrated on the thought that Harry would come soon. If he wrote it down, he'd be here. At least, that's what she hoped for.

_Please come soon, Harry._

----

_What does that even mean?_ Severus was walking to his quarters with the image of the girl throwing her arms in the air and slapping her wrist. _She needs to speak more_.

"Severus, my boy!" Snape froze in midstride at the sound of that voice.

"Albus."

"Can't you feel the air brimming with excitement? The houselves are preparing the Halloween meal for tonight. I hope you're saving your appetite for then!"

The dark professor held back his annoyed look and gave a small and courteous smile. "You forget, Albus, that this Halloween, just like last year's Halloween, I'm going to try and skip this year's celebration."

"Ah, so you'll be spending the night with your assistant?"

Every student in that hallway either dropped their books, tripped, spat out their drinks, or turned red. Severus gave an irritated glance at the old man, but he just smiled and his eyes twinkled.

"You did that on purpose." Severus stated.

"Did what?"

The professor sneered. "I don't intend to do anything of what your oddly tuned mind can think off."

"Nothing?"

"No."

Dumbledore tilted his head in curiosity. "Really? But, I'd assume that you would have something planned."

"The reason behind this assumption, Albus?"

"I thought it'd be quite obvious. Girls love Halloween. It's a time to spend with people you care for. To have fun! Almost like Christmas, but it's sooner! I'm sure that she'd want to spend this time with _you_. She seems to be fond of you very much. Why, after you passed out on the lakeside, she wouldn't leave your side till you got better."

"What are you talking about?"

Dumbledore was taken aback. "You didn't know? When you were unconscious it was that girl who took care of you. She was under the supervision of Poppy, but she didn't want anyone to come near you till you were better. I guess you don't remember. You were in and out of consciousness for that week-end."

"She did that?"

Albus nodded.

----

Severus opened his storage closet and backed up as a cloud of dust rose up and threatened to invade his lungs. He was searching for something. If Hedwig made that much effort to get him well, he should at least return the favor. After shoving for sometime through the gathered clutter, he found what he was looking for. They were decorations from _that_ time.

That night, the evening when Severus was going to tell Lily how he felt, was also the night they stopped being friends. Ever since he could remember, she had always been there for him. She was the only one in the world who called him 'Sev'. She was supposed to show up that night, but she didn't. It turns out, she had gone to Potter's party instead, she'd stayed longer than she intended. She promised to come, but she never showed. After that, they gradually stopped talking, and Lily didn't call him 'Sev' ever again.

Severus gave a dissatisfied grunt at the state of the box. When he brought it out into the light, he opened the lid and was a bit lighthearted to see that the contents weren't damaged in any way. There were candles, bat decorations that would float side to side…candy that was years and years old. _Better throw that away-it's moving!_ Severus dropped the box and the candy spilled out. _Snappers…_ Severus incinerated each of them with an easy spell and continued to look through the box. There were no horror films? Where'd they…_They're in my classroom._ Severus pondered. Should he get them now or wait for Hedwin to come back? Severus searched the box once more and found an old Halloween blanket. He grinned at the sight of it, but it dissipated when he heard a knock at the door.

Hedwin didn't knock. The defense wards went down when she neared them.

He strode to the door and opened it. The poor fool at the entrance looked up in terror at the Potions Master on Halloween. Somehow, the man seemed even more ferocious. "Yes?…Mr. Summers…?"

It was a sorry sight. The poor Hufflepuff began to melt from sheer horror. It was as if his spine had left him.  
"Mr. Summers!"

"I-is," He cleared his throat, "Sir, is Hedwin here?"

Severus shut the door. No, 'shut' was an understatement. He slammed the door shut. Deciding that the vexation was gone, he turned around to look at the box again, but a persistent knocking kept him from moving. Severus almost growled, and turned to face the door again. This was not the time! Why were they bothering him about Hedwin? He swung open the door and glared, his voice dripping with sarcasm. "How may I be of service?"

Instead of looking at just the Hufflepuff, Severus found himself staring at a two boys. He was confused and for a moment, something stupid would have slipped out. It was a thought along the lines of, _did you just duplicate, multiply, reproduce somehow asexually? _

"My name is Marcus Belby, Ravenclaw, Hedwin! Is! She! Home!" This was all said in one breath as he tried to fight off the Hufflepuff that was trying to pull the boy back. This was also said just before Severus slammed the door in the boys' faces. He was about to turn around, but he heard knocking again. At first, he was going to let it slide, but then, he heard pounding against his door!

"What is the problem, gentlemen?"

Severus not only looked at the two previous, but a new face had appeared. This one seemed a bit familiar at least. It was from his own house. Urquhart, the quidditch captain of the Slytherin team. The three had been wrestling!

"I invited Miss Hedwin-"

"To a house Halloween party-"

"I've come to pick her up!"

"I'm going to be taking her out."

"In your dreams."

"She'd never go out with an underachiever."

The boys looked at each other with fury, but no look was even close to comparison with Severus's. Snape realized what was going on. Hedwig had received invitations. That's what the notes were for. The man had coals for eyes now. These boys wanted to escort her to a party…

_Over my dead body!_ Severus gave a devil's grin.

"If you are all at a standstill with your decision, allow me to offer my assistance."

The trio gulped and Severus dragged them in. With a kick from his foot, the box on the ground was pushed most of the way under the center table. Severus took the single chair while the boys sat uncomfortably onto the couch.

"Now," Snape crossed his legs and leaned back, "What are your intentions with my assistant?" He smiled a not so very friendly smile and raised a hand almost too elegantly, "tea?"

The boys looked at each other. Was a night with one girl really _this_ much trouble? Well, she was cuter than average. And so shy, too. It'd be pointless to not try harder. They eyed each other and gave silent death threats to their opponents.

"Sir," Urquhart was the first to speak boldly. This was _his_ House leader afterall. The man would be generous to someome of his own kind, "I think I would be the best choice to be your assistant's date because-"

"He's a player!" Marcus shouted. "I promise to be kind-"

Snape hissed, "Silence. Let the boy finish his reasoning."

"Thank you, sir." The captain of the quidditch team gave a smug smirk to the Hufflepuff and continued on. "I would think it best for her to go with someone she was comfortable…"

He didn't get a chance to finish his sentence. The boy's face turned deathly pale and he started to mumble his words. Snape had just picked up a piece of parchment. On that piece of parchment was Hedwin's name written in his handwriting. It was his note!

Snape looked up from the paper and to the boys frightened face. "Please continue."

"I-I would…treat her…" Urquhart was trying so hard to remember if he wrote anything terrible on the paper "right…and…"

"I'm a bit confused." Snape set the note down and folded his hands. "Could you clear up something for me?"

"I'll t-try." The interrogated boy swallowed hard. "Oh! B-by drinks I mean non-alcoholic! A slytherin would never do something so shameful to bring disgrace to the House."

"But, of course." Severus smiled, "I wasn't referring to that. What did you mean by a good time?"

"Uh, simple stuff! Yeah! Just making sure she's happy?"

Severus tsked and shook his head. "That might have been true, but you had this part underlined. And that leads me to assume that your meaning of a good time differs from _my_ meaning of a good time. Something like…"

The boy looked horrified! Was the professor really going to say it?

"…" Severus paused. "That's odd, it slipped my mind."

Urquhart sighed with relief. Yes, the thought of sex had occurred to him. Well, he _was _a teenage boy with raging hormones! It's only natural! Besides, everyone was doing it. It's Halloween! He had run over the whole evening in his head on how things should go. She'd be to tired, and he'd offer to lead her to a quiet room, she'd fall for his manly charms…too bad this reasoning and events in his mind weren't as private as he thought.

_It's nice to have the confidentiality that I'm good at legilimens. _

"Get…out." Severus said quietly. It was so hushed and sudden that the boy was dumbstruck.

"S-Sir?"

"If you think," Snape got up and started to advance towards the boy, "that I would let someone like you even have an opportunity to touch her in a manner that is inappropriate, you are seriously mistaken! I'd destroy your very core of existence! Get out!"

"Sir! I don't have any intentions that are bad!"

"I beg to differ Mr. Bad Boy, now get out before I lose control of myself!"

The door slammed shut and the Captain found himself outside the other end. How did that man _know_?

Severus regained his composure at the door and turned around to choose his next victim. "Who's next?"

"Sir," The one from Ravenclaw, Mr. Belby, was, to Snape's horror, looking into the box of decorations, "were you planning a party? I thoroughly enjoy parties!"

"Yes, but surely not one with a…how did you put it? Ah yes, a 'scary and frightening Greasy Git of a Potions Master'. Am I correct?" He had quoted the title given to him from the Ravenclaw's note. Severus picked up the two boys by the collar and dragged them to the door, which had already opened.

"W-Wait! I didn't e-even get a chance!" Poor Mr. Summers pointed out with his voice cracking.

"You?" Severus sniffed, "You're a Hufflepuff."

"Aw…"

With questionable force, the man tossed the two out and locked the door quickly. "Victory is mine." He smiled to himself and dusted his hands from whatever dirt he had acquired by handling the boys. The virtue of Hedwin was safe. Now, back to the decorations. Actually, if she had so many invitations, she might want to go to one. Wasn't there four notes? Severus walked to where he had laid them, and it was true. But who had made the fourth? He opened the note and only had to read the bottom for the name. Potter. Well, that explained it. She wasn't coming home. At least, not for a while. He kicked the decorations with bitterness under the table. Another kick would have fully covered it, but he stopped.

The sound of a sob that had come from the other side of the door hit his ears. He didn't want to admit it, but the girl's voice was started to become undeniably recognizable to him. She was outside the door crying.

With Golden Boy's note in hand, he ran to the door and swung it open. "Hedwin!"

Severus saw Summers comforting a red and puffy eyed girl.

"Did you make her cry?" Severus shouted, but the boy shook his head.

"No, sir! I'd never!" Summers was patting her on the back. "After Marcus left, I saw her coming down from the other way. I don't know why she's crying."

So the boy really did care about her. "Thank you, Summers, that will be all."

"Yes, sir." Summers scratched his head and joked to Hedwin, "I guess this means you won't be coming to the party. Please feel better soon!"

When the boy had gone, Severus sat down next to Hedwin. "He didn't show?"

Hedwin shook her head. She started to sob. "R-real-ly want…t-to see him." _I guess he didn't want to see me._

The wave of emotions he was feeling from her was hurting him.

"Li-ed." Hedwin bowed her head.

"Maybe not. Perhaps he was preoccupied? Sometimes lying…is used to protect someone."

"Peop-le all-li…ars." She sniffled.

"Hedwin," Severus hesitantly put a hand on her head, "I will never do that to you. I promise."

Hedwin didn't believe him and showed it by looking away.

"Please look at me, Hedwin."

She did.

"If I do, I promise that if I can't get your forgiveness, I'll do something…drastic. I know what it feels like to be lied to. It hurts."

Hedwin nodded. "A lot."

There was a bit of silence, until Hedwin stared to speak again. "Hall-ween is stupid."

Severus started to laugh. She reminded him of himself. "Yes, I agree, but it can be fun too." He stood up and offered her his hand. "I have something to show you."

Hedwin was lifted up with ease to her feet and Severus continued, "I wasn't really planning something, but it came to my attention that this Halloween would be our-"

"Professor!" It was Draco running down to the halls, "Where is she?"

The blond was out of breath.

"What are you doing here? Aren't you supposed to be at your dormitories or the great hall?"

"Aren't you supposed to be chaperoning?"

Severus kept his mouth shut, and opened the door.

"Anyways, Hedwig? Where have you been?"

"You said her name wrong."

The girl and boy looked at Severus with a puzzled look.

"Her name is Hedwin."

"Uh…" Draco looked at the girl who just motioned for the Malfoy to go with it. _Severus thinks her name is…Hedwin. Well that's a stupid name._ "Right, Hedwin, did you get the note from Harry?"

The three walked through the door. Hedwin nodded.

"Then why aren't you at the big clock? We've been waiting for you!"

Severus stopped. "The note? She's been waiting there all afternoon."

Draco's mouth dropped. "All afternoon? It's supposed to be at twelve midnight! We're going to meet the cast from the movie _Till the End of Summers_. Didn't you read it properly? Bloody Potter."

Severus opened his mouth, but Draco interrupted. "I've got special permission from mother _and_ Dumbledore."

"And your father?" Severus crossed his arms.

"Please don't tell father." It was more of an order. "Anyways, Hedwi_n_, let's hurry! We're late! We've been waiting for you since nine!"

Hedwin rubbed her eyes. So this meant that Harry didn't lie to her! She looked at Severus excitedly and smiled. But, it seemed that the man wasn't as enthused as she was. Quite the contrary, in fact. He seemed upset.

"Well," Severus gave a curt bow of the head to Hedwin and placed his hands behind his back. "See? He didn't lie, it was just misinformation."

"What are you talking about?" Draco frowned. "Just grab your coat, Hedwig-n. Hedwin. There are a few people waiting."

Hedwin wasn't moving. Instead, she kept watching Severus, waiting for him to ask her to stay. When it didn't come her demeanor clouded a bit, but she gave a smile and grabbed his sleeve. She didn't want him to be unhappy for Halloween.

"Have a safe evening." Severs pulled away and walked to his bedchambers. "Keep warm. Make sure the wards lock when you leave."

She kept looking after him, but Draco tugged at her arm. "Let's go now. I've got your coat. Let's go!"

The door to Severus's room shut and that was the last she saw of Severus.

Down through the halls, Draco kept a few paces infront of Hedwin. "So what's with the new name? Hedwin? That's stupid."

"Holy…peace."

Drace stopped, "What?"

"Means…that."

"That's…kind of…no, it's still stupid."

Hedwin frowned.

"But, I assume you love it." He added.

Her smile came back and she nodded.

As they were nearing their destination, Hedwin felt that something was missing. She felt her neck and shrieked. "Scarf!"

"What? You don't need it do you? We're really late."

Hedwin started to pull Draco to a stop when he began pulling her again.

"Not long!" She shouted and started to run back down the opposite way.

"W-wait! But what if it takes to long?"

"Will no-t! Stay!"

Draco whined as he watched the girl disappear down the stairs.

----

Back to Severus, the man was…sulking. He walked outside after the pair had left and looked at the box full of what was supposed to be another attempt for the best Halloween. He picked up the paper that had a checked off list of what was there. He had written this that year. It was a list of Lily's favorite things during Halloween. He had everything down that year, yet nothing to show for it. Halloween was his most hated holiday. While looking at the contents once more, he kicked it again. This time, the whole thing toppled over and everything fell out.

"I hate this." He said to himself.

He had gotten his hopes up again, and they had gotten crushed. He stormed into his room and bathroom, and began to undress. A look at the tub and it began to fill with water. He needed to get his mind off his hurt emotions. Maybe he should even wash his hair today?

----

While Severus had locked himself in the bedroom bath, Hedwin had just entered the living quarters. She quickly hurried to Severus's room for her scarf, but in her haste, she failed to see the spilled Halloween material on the floor. With a yelp, she fell down. She sat up and hugged her bruised shin before taking a look to what had caused her moment of clumsiness. What she saw made her heart melt. They were decorations!

She thought hard and remembered Severus had wanted to show her something. Had he been planning a party for just the two of them? But, didn't Severus have plans? Of course he didn't! He wasn't chaperoning for the night either. He was actually planning a private party for their first Halloween together.

Hedwin looked at all the streamers and the box. She picked it up and looked inside. Candles and pumpkins…he was really going all out for this. Hedwin hugged the box and laid it down. After making a decision, she ran back to the hall where Malfoy was waiting.

----

What was the point of bathing if he didn't even change out of his everyday clothes. Severus ran a towel through his hair till it stopped dripping and laid on his bed. Come to think of it, the girl had been staying with him till September, and she still had no bed for her own. She'd been sleeping in the living room. He sat up. How big was this room anyways? Severus needed a yardstick. Lazily, he got up from the bed and headed towards the living room.

He wrapped his hand on the brass handle and pulled open the door. "Candles?"

The room was dimly lit with many golden yellow lights. The candles were floating along with the pumpkins he had stored. Chains and fake webbing were strung around the room in an eerie yet graceful way and in the middle of this was a table with candles as well. This time, there were treats from the dining hall and other types that had been served at dinner apparently.

"Hedwin!" Severus stepped back.

The girl was standing in front of a giant screen that had been set up. She was straightening the entire screen. At the sound of her name, she paused and looked to Severus and smiled. "Sev! Ha…ppy, Hall…" She paused and took a deep breath. "Halloween."

"Why aren't you with Draco?"

"First Halloween to..gether." Hedwin said slowly. "With you."

"Are you sure?"

Hedwin nodded and lifted up the list she had found and pointed to what they should do first.

"Candy apples." Severus coughed out of embarrassment. "This list was made a long time ago. I don't think it'd be…"

Hedwin's shoulders drooped.

"Well, I'll call Dobby to get what we need. Get two pots."

Hedwin nodded but then also pointed to something else on the list.

Severus read the list again. "Movies. So that's why you have the projector. With Dobby's help I'm assuming. I don't have the reel with me. I'll have to get it…we are _not_ going to paint faces."

"Fun!"

"Yes, if you're five."

Hedwin looked at Severus with excitement.

Severus counted the years she had been around. In human years, was she actually five yeas old? How long had it been since Potter got her? He groaned. "We'll try."

The Potions Master grumbled when he summoned the houself. He got the right ingredients needed. Hedwin grabbed an apple, but Severus stopped her.

"Wash your hands first, and get an apron." He didn't want a mess in the house.

As the girl did what she was told. When she sat back down, Severus picked up a small stake of wood and gave it to the girl. "Stab the apple as if it were the heart of your enemy and dip it in the pool of cherry that resembles the blood that spilled."

Hedwin watched as Severus pierced the apple and dove it into the cherry caramel. She didn't know whether he was joking or not as she saw his reaction and heard his quiet evil laugh. She started to laugh herself and followed suit as Severus did. She even tried to mock his evil laugh.

Severus fought hard to keep in his real laughter when he heard the girl's imitation. He won, but just barely. "Add the almonds."

He hoped that no one would come into the room. Truth be told, he was embarrassed to some degree, but there was a part of him that was having fun.

The next item on the list, almost gave Severus a heart attack. Carving pumpkins could be fun, but there was also a danger to it. Hedwin had been holding the knife awkwardly and cutting towards herself. She almost stabbed herself in the stomach. Luckily, he had stopped her. It had been a close call. He almost lost a few fingers.

"Shall I tell you of the boy who died on Halloween night?"

Hedwin's eye widened.

While all of Hogwarts had a house party, there were two who sat in the lowest part of the castle having their own private celebration. It wasn't as grand as a movie premier showing with the actors, but to Hedwin, it was very special.

Just as Severus finished his short tale, Hedwin had already gathered blankets. They'd both decided to eat while watching a film.

"The film…" Severus realized he'd yet to retrieve it from his office. "I'll be back soon alright?"

Hedwin nodded, but she was uncertain. She didn't want him to leave anymore. It was dark, and…what if that scary story was real? Apparitions were one thing, but what caused the death was another. What if he didn't come back to celebrate Halloween with her?

"Don't go?" Hedwin asked.

Severus pulled off the apron he had been wearing. "Is something wrong?"

Hedwin shook her head.

"I'll be back soon." Severus saw that his words weren't getting through. He knelt down to the girl's eye level. "I promise. I'll be back before the night is through."

_He promised._ Hedwin nodded. _He said he'd never lie._

Severus got up, walked to the door and stopped for a moment, "When I come back, we'll spend your first Halloween together. I promise."

Hedwin heard the door closed and started to wait. She couldn't remember the last time she felt so excited and happy. Her smile couldn't stop showing itself on her face. She took out the list of things again that was on the list. The very last one was something special. So special, it had been ripped off, but Hedwin had found the part stuck inside the folds of the box. It read: _Say I love you_.

Hedwin smiled warmly. People who cared most about someone say this. You were supposed to say this. That was what Hermione told Hedwin. Hermione said that this was said to families or people that were very special. And Severus was very special to Hedwin, just as if he was her family. Harry was family too, but in a different sense.

_I want to tell Sev how special he is to me._ She thought , _done so much already._ The grand finale, was a cake. Dobby had prepared it for Hedwin quickly. The elf couldn't stop giggling when he put the words in icing on top. "Dobby is very happy." He kept on saying.

Hedwin pulled the cover off the cake that was being supported by the rather large candles she had put on near the three words. If Severus wasn't going to take long, she might as well light the candles now. It took a few times, and a few burns, but she lit the candles with matches in the kitchen. Thought the wounds weren't much, they still hurt. She told herself she'd take care of them later and began to wait for Severus again as she practiced how to say 'I love you' in her head.

----

Severus shuffled his hand through the drawers in his office until he found what he was looking for. They were old films, but they should run fine through the projector. He picked up four at the most and began making his way. He couldn't believe that after all these years he'd actually be having a pleasant Halloween.

To share evenings together, converse, just being in friendly company, that was what really mattered. Maybe these films would be too scary for her? She didn't seem like one to like horror. To think that she gave up meeting a sparkly pretty boy whom she admired to spend the night with him made the man feel a bit appreciated, even happy. A thought struck him. He was actually happy? He had to be careful. If he admitted this to himself, the fragile moment might break. But, was it alright to let himself fall into this temporary bliss? Someone like him? Maybe there still was a chance for redemption. Perhaps he did something good in the past. Something that gave him Hedwin as a friend.

_Friend? _The man almost dropped the film reels._ I have a friend that isn't a deatheater. _

Would, or, does she feel the same? Sometimes it seemed that way, a friendship, but sometimes he felt like a babysitter. No, he was definitely more like her guardian. It was such a complicated relationship, yet…he was enjoying every part of it.

"Severus!" The headmistress walked in. Apparently she hadn't had time to change since she was still in her nightwear.

"Minerva?"

She was followed in by Dumbledore and Lucius. He saw another surprising face, Igor Karkaroff.

"Igor?" Snape looked at the three confused.

"One of the schools is being targeted." Lucius spoke darkly.

"What?"

"In the south of France, deatheaters have begun assaulting the other schools of magic. The barriers are failing and the school cannot hold out any longer. They've called for help." Minerva put her hand to her lips. "The Ministry of Magic is so busy hiding this from the Muggle world they haven't had time to deal-"

Severus's face showed no emotion. "You want us to…"

"Only you and Lucius can get in without being conspicuous." Dumbledore motioned to them. "You two, along with Karkaroff, know how to act around the deatheaters in masks. The Headmistress there has asked for you specifically, as well as Headmaster Igor Karkaroff. He will be joining you from Scandinavia. I, myself, will be making the trip. The top priority is the safety of the students."

"Headmaster," Severus looked at Albus with a bit of hope, "May I be excused from this assignment?"

The others looked at Severus.

The Potions Professor continued, "At any other time, I would say yes without a shred of hesitation, but-." There was a small amount of desperation, but it went unnoticed by everyone except Lucius.

"You can't be serious." Igor's face distorted in anger. "If I have to put up with the Dark Lord's fanatics, then I refuse to be going in alone."

Lucius frowned, "You'll hardly be alone, Karkaroff."

The Headmaster from Scandinavia was turning red. "Don't you dare think that I'm going to be put in the heat of the battle by myself, while you are all safely in the castle protecting the barriers. Just because I'm not an important figure in the Ministry gives you no _right_! I'm only doing this dangerous task because I've done so much wrong, but Severus has done ten fold the amount of my wrongs."

Severus took the abusive words with silence.

"I've already paid my debt to the wizarding world. Why should I have to suffer any more than necessary!" Igor shouted. It was clear his presence at Hogwarts had been ordered instead of being a gracious act of friendship.

Dumbledore was about to calm the man down, when Severus spoke up.

"I'm sorry. Albus, you said that these things you asked of me were simply requests. Nothing more."

"I did."

"You said that the decision to follow was entirely mine to make."

"I meant it then, and I meant it now more than ever. I do not want to force your hand, Severus." Albus nodded.

The room quieted down and waited for Severus to either accept the task at hand.

"I have somewhere else I have to be." He said quietly and exited the room, leaving the others to be dumbfounded by the response. They had never thought that Severus would deny them.

As Severus came to the crossroads of the exit of the main entrance and the hallway that would lead to his quarters he ran over in his mind what he had just did. This night, instead of choosing the fate of the world he chose to stay. Rather than choosing to go on a ride to defend what he had, in the past, helped grow, he chose to stay with her. Yes, he was a terrible person, but he wanted to be happy tonight. But did a person who abandoned another school for selfish reasons deserve to be happy?

"Severus!"

The Potions Master stopped and turned around, "Luc-"

"Who do you think you are?" Lucius said angrily. "You know how dangerous this mission is!"

A spell was cast and it sent Severus back towards a wall.

"You're turning your back on us? Me? Severus, we're supposed to be friends!"

Severus drew his wand and aimed it to the Malfoy, but he hesitated.

"Without another watchdog in our mission, we're doomed to be found out. Is that what you want? Just because you're tired of all this, you think you can just walk away? Severus, you selfish-"

Snape's eyes narrowed and the man threw a couterspell against Lucius's attack making the blond flip backwards onto his back.

"You said that I should be happy!" Severus shouted back.

"Yes," Lucius felt warm liquid fall from his lips and wiped it on the back of his hands as he supported himself with an elbow, "but not at the expense of everyone else."

Snape loomed over the man he called friend. "You mean not at the expense of _your_ happiness, Lucius."

"Sev," Lucius shook his head, "I have a family. And you…you-"

"Have no one." Severus lowered his wand and looked at the dropped films on the ground. They were ruined now. The shock they had faced damaged the reel rendering them useless now.

"I need you to watch my back. I have actually family waiting for me to come back home. And what do you have?"

"What are you two doing?" Minerva shouted. Albus and Igor were behind her once again, trying to see what had caused such a dispute between the two men. "Severus, perhaps you should leave-"

"I'm coming." Snape shook his head to the side till the long strands of his hair fell from his face to the side of his head. "I have nothing to live for, am I right Lucius? Nothing gained, nothing lost."

"Severus, it isn't necessary." Albus interrupted.

"If that's your decision, then we must leave at once." Headmaster Karkaroff was obviously pleased with the man's changed decision. His crooked smile made everyone silently cringe, but he took no notice. Minerva tried to dissuade the professor, but Snape wouldn't hear of it. Instead of making his way to his quarters, he passed the hall and walked out of the castle without looking back.

----

Hedwin opened her eyes after resting them for a while. She looked at the candles and became alarmed. They were melting over the icing. In a desperate attempt to save the message, she used her hands to wipe the hot wax from falling over. She grabbed the candle and didn't pull back until the wax cooled and made a makeshift hood to prevent anymore wax to fall temporarily.

She looked at the door and waited patiently for Sev to come back.


	13. Thanksgiving is an American Holiday

Author: Of Crimson Moonlight

Author's note:I'm so sorry that this took so long! I intended to to the holidays but then classes started! But don't worry dear roses, I'll be including Christmas, New Year's(Maybe), and of course Valentine's day. I actually tried uploading this sooner, but the site wouldn't let me! Thank you for waiting. Reviews are much appreciated. I'm so sorry this took so long!

Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling, from what genius mind did she sprout from to make such a wonderful story about a boy called Harry Potter.

Thanksgiving is an American Holiday

"Let's Paaarrrrttttyyyyy!" One of the American students shouted as he handed out the drinks. "Happy Thanksgiving!" A girl raised her glass.

One of the students had started to bring in a projector and a modern day device that had been sent by her parents. "I got the tape of the game!"

The other Hogwarts students were confused. Many had never experienced Thanksgiving before. The majority had actually come for the drinks, but when they saw a decent spread of food on the table they decided to stay a bit longer.

"Football!"

"At least that's something we know about." Someone whispered.

----

A whole month. He'd been here a whole month. The others had gone back, yet he had been ordered to stay for another week. It was already the end of November, and he wasn't able to contact her. For fear of his presence being known by the Death Eaters, no letter was to be sent in or out. It could have been intercepted. Traveling by floo powder was out of the question and that network of travel was shut down. No one was leaving or visiting the castle any time soon.

"Severus?"

The man stood up to address the voice and saw Madame Maxime.

"How are you holding up? I know that you don't have to be here, but it is appreciated."

Severus and the Giantess were in the dining hall that was decorated with blue to a point where it was almost sickening. Blue cushy chairs, blue decorated walls, tapestries with the symbol of the Beauxbatons, and even the houselves here wore blue. Ugh.

"Actually, I do have to be here." Severus said this with a grim smile, "Not my will but Dumbledore's."

"Oh come now, it's not so terrible."

In the first few days of being at the castle, Severus used many of his talents to help the institution as best as he could. The ingredients for many remedies were vast in the academy. This was pleasing to him, but as the days went on, other missions were carried out outside the castle such as sabotaging a few well thought out attempts to breach the outer barrier.

There was also the problem of getting the students out. This was more difficult to solve. Some blond had given a speech to her fellow peers and convinced many to stay at the academy and defend their beloved school. Though Madame Maxime was touched, Severus had to hold back a gag. Heroes. How he hated them. Dumbledore, of course, applauded their antics, but suggested that the best thing would be for them to leave so that they weren't a distraction. This worked, but for the ones without a home to go to, they refused to be moved by reason.

Severus couldn't care less.

It hadn't occurred to him yet, but without that girl to keep him in check, his mood began to darken each week. He was cold to his friend, Lucius, he jeered at the other Headmaster, and made sarcastic remarks to Albus. The only reason he had stayed courteous to Madame Maxime was because she was a woman (his chivalry wasn't completely dead). However, this didn't stand for the rest of the female students. When he walked down the halls, he seemed to give off a very angry aura that caused the sea of girls to part for him. Just like in Hogwarts.

He knew the girls were cautious of him, but what he didn't know was that amongst the little pieces of gossip that were going around, he was considered attractive.

Being one of the very few male specimens in the school, the girls related him to the famous actor from a well-known muggle film. He was the closest thing to a sex god after Lucius, but that guy was married. The platinum blond made it quite clear in the dining hall when a female teacher asked him to accompany her to a private dinner date. In fact, he shouted it. When the teacher didn't believe him, the Slytherin insisted he was attracted to men. To prove his false statement, he grabbed the closest thing next to him and kissed it.

That thing was Severus. This crushed the girls' spirits. But their hopes were rekindled when the Potions Master smacked his friend on the face.

In the middle of November, Severus found himself being stalked on several occasions. The first time was during his rounds of the school and its entrances. The girl had been inching her way closer and closer till she actually ran head on into him. The other time, was in the early morning when he heard a noise from a broom closet. The girl was using it as her checkpoint for hiding. For a while, Snape bore this burden, but his limit was reached when a girl had dared to go into the faculty bathroom. Snape snapped at the girl and shouted that he wasn't a Death Eater.

He had concluded that the reason why he was under such surveillance from the girls was because of his background. He left the facilities and decided to bring the situation up with the girl to Madame Maxime.

----

"So this isn't our football?"

"Hike!"

Ron found himself with the American football in his hand and also found himself at the center of attention. A girl on the opposite team started to rush towards him, "If you don't want to die, pass it to Potter!"

The redhead looked confused, but he saw his friend wide open for a pass. What harm could come from that? As soon as he passed the ball, the swarm of the opposing team headed towards the golden boy.

"Tackle Harry Potter!" A girl squealed.

"Oh my-" Harry's voice was cut off after being smothered by fan girls.

Hermione helped herself to pumpkin pie and sighed. A thought broke her determination to getting a perfect slice when she realized something. "I haven't seen Hedwin for a while now."

----

Each passing day, Severus found himself visiting the owlery. And each time he came back from it, it left him in a more miserable state.

His personality had become so ill-tempered these past few days that Madame Maxime even thought it best for the man to go to his temporary quarters, which so happened to be the lower living quarters of the academy, just like in Hogwarts.

"A demon in Hogwarts and a demon here." Severus muttered. Instead of following the Headmistress's suggestion, he decided to go back to the owlery.

The night was colder than usual, but he put up with it. He sat on the stairs that led up to the owl's abode for a while and began to think back when life was a little bit easier for him. He looked up and saw a falling star. Of course there'd be a falling star. It was too convenient. Just when he was feeling his worse, something comes along to make him feel even more worse.

"_Are you going to make a wish?" Lily asked._

"_Why?"_

_Lily looked at her wristwatch and pointed to it. "Right now, it is exactly 11:11 p.m. If you make a wish right now, it'll come true."_

"_Isn't it easier to wish on a star?"_

"_I suppose, but it has to be a falling star." Lily stated. _

"_A shooting star." Severus frowned._

"_Yes. Maybe if it's at 11:11, and there's a shooting star, your wish will definitely come true." Lily looked up at the stars. "Aw, no such luck."_

"_What would you wish for?"_

"_I…" Severus looked at Lily and cleared his throat. "I wish…"_

"_Wait! You can't tell me! I just remembered."_

"_But you just asked…"_

"_If you tell someone, then your wish won't come true."_

"I wish…" Snape said out loud. "I wish I could see her." There. He said it.

----

"Whooo what a Thanksgiving party. I'm so fat!"

"Dumbledore?" One of the students dropped his drink.

"Funny," the Headmaster said, "I didn't expect you to be here."

"Ah, I wasn't invited directly. I…came with a friend." The kid said awkwardly.

The Headmaster shrugged. "You do what you must. Oh! Bean casserole. And a turducken!"

----

"Professor Snape!" A scrawny looking woman had called from a door in the courtyard. "There's a breaking point in the barrier."

"Where?" The Potions Master stood up and followed the woman.

The barrier used to protect the school had been thrown together so hastily that it was only a second level of protection. It could withstand many types of attacks, but it had to be kept up and fortified from the outside. That was where Severus and Lucius came in. Lucius had gone back to his family, leaving Severus to strengthen the shields, as the attacks grew less and less frequent.

"In the north entrance."

"How? I didn't hear an attack."

"I think it's just wear and tear." The woman led the man to the underground part of the castle. Here was the only way in and out of the area that didn't have the barrier's charm over it. If Voldemorte's followers were to find it, the school would be left open to a massacre.

"I'll leave the spell down for a half hour."

"That's more than enough time."

The woman nodded and held out her wand. "Let's hope so."

There was a door in the ground. As the woman pointed her wand, the cracks around the exit started to glow. When it stopped shining, Severus grabbed the handle and the doors were thrown open. Without another word, he jumped into the ground.

When he reached the other side of the tunnel that was used to travel under the barrier, Snape had already donned a Death Eater mask. He wasn't expecting to run into Death Eaters, but if he should, then he'd rather have a mask on.

When he got to the area of the shield that was damaged, he was relieved to see that the breakage was limited. It looked like a picture that had been burned slightly by a dying match, a few holes here and there, but luckily, it could be fixed in a few minutes. Severus took out his wand and began to repair the shield. When the repairs were made, Severus stepped back and admired his work. As he ran his hand through the now transparent part of the barrier, he realized how fortunate it was that a Death Eater hadn't found the weak spot.

Satisfied at the finished job, he stepped back but something pointed touched his neck.

"Got you, scum." A voice said in a hushed and dangerous tone. "Give me your wand."

Severus hesitated, but raised his wand over his shoulder. When it was seized, he found himself being turned around roughly.

"Long live the Dark Lord, eh?"

So he had been caught by Death Eaters? Snape looked at his captor, but relaxed a bit. The one holding the wand was an Auror by the name of Proudfoot. He had said those praising words with cynicism.

If Proudfoot had been the only one there, Severus could have revealed his identity, but the two weren't alone. Another Death Eater was at the mercy of the Auror. What was worse, the auror didn't recognize Severus.

"Two Death Eaters in one night…" Proudfoot smiled. "Tonight must be my lucky night."

"Luck? I think it's cursed. Two Death Eaters, and one auror. Brother in darkness, we can destroy him together." The Death Eater shouted to Severus.

"Try it and I'll use an unforgivable on you both, Walden Macnair!"

"Look how he's shaking." The Death Eater laughed.

Proudfoot looked to Severus and made a mistake. He turned his back to the other one. Without hesitating, Macnair launched himself at the Auror. Severus jumped to the side and evaded an attack from Proudfoot. When he got back up, Macnair had already grabbed Severus's wand and tossed it to him.  
"Now you die!" Walden shouted, but Severus blocked the attack.

"Expelliarmus!" Shouted Severus.

The Death Eater stumbled and fell onto his back.

"Proudfoot, get up!" Severus shouted. Just as the auror was about to get up, Severus pushed him down. "My mistake, stay down!"

A sickening green ray of light shot out from the recovering Death Eater's wand and hit Severus away from the auror. The attack left Severus motionless on the ground.

"A traitor!" Macnair smirked as he held his bleeding wounds. "Haven't used a curse on a traitor in a while. No one's been that stupid. I'll deal with the auror first-"

"Sectum Sempra!"

The Death Eater was blown far from the unarmed auror as blood flowed like red ribbons through the air.

"Up." Severus dragged Proudfoot up till he was standing and the two began traveling through the surrounding trees. "I'm going to lead him away. Keep going straight till you see a hollow dead tree. There's an entrance there. Go through it and you'll find safety within the castle."

"Merlin! Is...it you, Se-"

"Just go, I hear something." Severus looked up at the night sky and started to hurry away from the auror. When Severus decided that he was far enough from the barrier's entrance, he lit up a sign in the sky giving away his position for the Death Eaters to find him. He couldn't go back to the secret entrance. Through trees and dead foliage, the man was running now. Where could he hide? He had to find a place soon, but where?

"The signal came from over here!"

The voice was near now and Severus found himself stumbling. No, not stumbling, falling! He was falling into a small hole! Like a rabbit's hole? What was this? Alice in Wonderland? In the story, she was floating, but he was falling like a rock in a river. Nothing was going to break his fall!

_I've survived being seen by __Death Eaters__ but now I'm going to break my leg. Perfect!_

He fell hard, but something broke his fall.

"Owie."

'_Owie'?_ _That's…not my voice. But it's so familiar. _Severus thought._  
_

"Lumos." Severus whispered.

The light lifted up the curtain of darkness and Severus found himself looking down at a girl with dark hair, pale skin, and those dark big eyes that screamed naïve.

"Hedwin!"

The girl smiled. She found what she was looking for and tackled her current obsession. Best Thanksgiving ever!

----

Hedwin's note:

Deer Drayco,

Sumthing must be wrong becuz Sev dispeerd. Can knot spel that werd. Goin to fined him.

Luv Hedwi_n_


End file.
